RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen
by Unknown user3324
Summary: Summer and Qrow have a son together.
1. Chapter 1

RWBY: A Life of Misfortune

Qrow's POV, 15 years ago

I stood next to Summer as she held our new born baby.

"It's a boy." she told me with teary eyes. "He looks just like you, Qrow."

I got closer to the little guy. "I don't know...I think he looks more like you."

"What should we name him?"

"Hmm...Liam?" I replied with a shrug. "It was the first thing that popped into my head."

"Liam..." Summer repeated. "Liam...I like it."

Liam's POV, present day

I had just finished making my weapon, with the help of my father.

"I would have thought you'd make a scythe." my dad said before taking a swig from his flask.

I shrugged. "Ruby said she wanted to make a scythe so I thought it'd be kinda boring if all 3 of us had the same weapon."

"I see."

"Besides...there's nothing wrong with brass knuckles that turn into daggers." I told him.

"What about long range targets?" he asked. "You won't be able to take them down with close range weapons."

"That's why I have this." I reached under the table and pulled out a pistol. It was a Glock 9, brand new.

"Where did you get that?" my father asked.

"Uncle Tai gave it to me because I told him what kind of weapons I wanted. He said the same thing you did which is why he gave me this." I went to hold up the pistol to him but dropped it onto the table, sending nails and bolts everywhere. "Son of a bitch!"

My father chuckled. "A bit unlucky today?"

I glared at him. "Was that supposed to be a pun? You've been spending too much time around Yang."

He chuckled again. "Are they finished?"

I spun back to the table, and pulled out the twin weapons. "Yeah, just a few personal touches and they're good to go."

"Personal touches?"

"I'm going to etch in a crow on both of the handles." I replied.

"Why?"

"Because of you." I told him. "I mean...you are the only parent I've ever known and...it's a nice way to remember you when I go to Beacon."

"Still hoping to get in, huh?"

"Well, yeah." I said with a smile. "It's been my dream to become a Huntsman. You know that."

"Yeah." he chuckled. "Your mother would be proud."

At the mention of my mother, I looked down at the floor. "W-what was she like?"

"Huh?"

"Mom. What was she like?" I asked again.

"Why do you ask?"

"Because..." I sighed. "Nevermind."

My dad sighed. "She was...amazing in every way. You remind me a lot of her."

"I do?"

"Yes." he nodded. "You have a lot of her in you. You inherited that silver eye from her."

I placed my hand over my left eye. "Mom had silver eyes?" I asked. "Like aunt Summer?"

He looked to the floor. "Yes, she did."

I smiled. "That's...pretty cool."

"Yeah...it is."

"Did Ruby get her silver eyes because of Summer?" I asked. "Nevermind, that's a pretty dumb question now that I ask it."

My dad rubbed my head, playfully. "I got to go. Oz has another mission for me and I have to leave soon. Think you can get to Tai's place?"

"Yeah, I know the way." I replied.

"Good." he grabbed his weapon and headed for the door. "I'll be at Tai's in a few days to get you, okay?"

"Yeah." I followed him out the door and locked it behind me. "Be back soon."

I turned around and took off into the forest, heading towards my uncle's house.

End of chapter 1


	2. Chapter 2

RWBY: Life of Misfortune

Liam's POV

I walked up to the door and knocked. A few seconds passed before the door opened to Ruby popping her head around the corner.

"Liam!" she squealed before pulling me into a hug. "Did you miss me?!"

"Nope." I ruffled her hair. "Where's uncle Tai?"

"Dad? He's out with Yang." Ruby replied. "He let me stay here alone for the first time!" she smiled, clearly proud.

"Huh." I glanced around. "Dad is out on a mission, so he sent me here to stay with you guys for a few days. Is that ok?"

"Yep!" she led me inside before shutting and locking the door. "They should be back soon." As if on que, the backdoor opened. "They're back!" Ruby squealed. She ran to the door. "Dad, Yang, look who's here!" Ruby pointed at me.

"Liam!" Yang said as she tackled me in a hug. "When did you get here?!"

"A few minutes ago." I answered as I returned the hug. "Ruby let me in."

I saw Tai glance at Ruby. "Didn't I tell you _not_ to open the door?"

Ruby shrugged in reply.

"So, where's Qrow?" Tai asked.

"Dad's out on a mission." I replied. "He said he'd be gone for a few days. So-"

"Can he stay here until uncle Qrow gets back?!" Ruby asked before I could.

"I don't see why not." Tai replied with a shrug.

"Oh, I have something to show you!" Yang said as she dragged me out of the room. "I finally finished them!"

"Finished...them?" I repeated.

She took me to her room and opened a drawer, pulling out a twin pair of gauntlets. "Aren't they cool?!"

"Yeah!" I hovered my fingers over one of them. "Shotgun gauntlets." I said softly as I noticed the shotgun shells loaded in the gauntlets. "Unique."

"I call them Ember Celica." she said with a smile.

"I finished my weapons, too." I replied as I pulled them out.

"Brass knuckles?" she asked.

"That's not all." I pressed the button on the side of them and a blade popped out of the top of each.

"Pretty cool." Yang said with a nod. "But I don't see a way for you to take out long range targets."

"That's why I have this." I pulled out the Glock. "Tai gave it to me."

"Oh." she shrugged. "It's better than nothing, I guess."

"I know it isn't as unique as a shotgun inside of the weapon but it's better than these if I go up against a Nevermore." I told her, holding up my brass knuckles.

"Huh."

"So, I hear Ruby is planning on a scythe." I said.

"Yeah." Yang nodded. "She actually already made the blueprint."

"Really?"

"Yep." Yang replied. "She's going to name it 'Cresent Rose'. According to the blueprint Ruby made, it's going to be a scythe-sniper hybrid."

"Sounds...awesome!"

Yang shrugged. "So, how long do you plan on staying here?"

"Trying to get rid of me already?" I teased. "I just got here, Yang."

"No, I just want to see how many days I get to knock you into the ground before you leave." she replied with a smirk.

"Ooh, you think you can beat me in a fight!" I chuckled. "Want to test that now or later?"

"Thought you'd never ask."

A few minutes later

Yang stood across from me, her hands in front of her in a fight stance. She had Ember Celica on which meant we were using our weapons.

I pulled out my brass knuckles and took my stance.

"Ready?" I asked.

"Ready!"

We slowly circled each other as Tai and Ruby watched.

"Kick his butt, Yang!" Ruby cheered.

Yang smirked before rushing me, throwing a left cross. I ducked under it and punched her knee, causing her to stumble before rolling away.

She stood up and readied herself, waiting for me to attack. I slowly circled her before running towards her, punching with a left hook.

She leaned back, dodging my attack and went for a counter but tripped over something, landing on her side. I pulled my fist back and punched where she was but missed as she rolled away, quickly getting back on her feet.

She pulled her leg back and tried to kick me but I quickly dropped to the ground, dodging her attack and kicking her legs out from under her. I lifted my leg up and tried to slam my heel into her chest but felt her grab my leg, keeping it away from her as she rolled away.

I got to my feet but was quickly knocked back down as Yang took the chance to throw a punch. I landed on my back as Yang circled me, waiting for me to get up.

Getting to my feet, I raised my hands in front of me, as Yang rushed me, throwing a barrage of quick punches.

I blocked each attack and crouched down in an attempt to kick her legs out from under her but she easily jumped over my leg, punching me as she landed.

I rolled away and got back up, feeling my aura about to break. I smirked and ran at her as she ran at me.

As she reached me, she threw a punch but I quickly used my semblance to turn into a crow, flying behind her and turning back, landing on her and knocking her to the ground. She struggled under my foot before I stepped off her, letting her get up.

"What was that?!" Yang asked me.

"My semblance." I replied. "I got it from dad. I can turn into a crow at will."

"That's sooo cool!" Ruby squealed.

"Heh, thanks."

Tai yawned. "Alright, it's getting late." he said. "Liam, you get the guest bedroom."

"Thank you."

I walked upstairs and entered the bedroom. Before I laid down, I pulled out something I've been working on for awhile but want to keep secret for some time. I know my brass knuckles won't be good enough in major situations and neither will my Glock, so I've been drawing ideas for a secondary weapon.

I had drawn a few weapons but most of them would take more than two years to make by myself. I sat down and pulled out a pen, starting to draw new ideas.

A few days later

I smirked at the drawing I had just finished. It wasn't anything over the top, just something that would get the job done.

End of chapter 2


	3. Chapter 3

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV, 2 years later

I sheathed my katana as I placed my brass knuckles in my pockets. It didn't take as long as I thought to finish my katana, took a few months to get it perfect and add a few personal touches, the crow on the handle. Of course, like all Huntsmen and Huntresses, my katana had something special. There was a button on the hilt that, if pressed, would accelerate the swing, causing a lot more damage than me just swinging it. I added this because it would prove to be an advantage over my opponents, being quick usually is. The button was hidden, making the weapon look like a normal katana so no one should suspect a sudden boost in my swing.

I had practiced with my new weapon, coming up with a few moves of my own as well as getting used to the sudden jolt when I pressed the button.

"So, you're off to Beacon today?" my father asked.

"Yeah." I nodded. "It's going to be great!"

My father chuckled. "Don't get into too much trouble." he told me.

"No promises." I turned towards the airship. "I gotta go."

"Yeah." he took a swig of his flask.

I got on the airship and watched as the doors closed, taking off towards Beacon.

"Finally." I breathed out.

"I know!" a familiar voice said next to me.

I glanced over. "Yang?" I took a step back. "I thought you were on a different airship.

"I thought so too, but it seems we got a bit lucky." she replied.

"So, what have you been up to?"

"Training...a lot." she replied. "I got better with my gauntlets."

"Not good enough to beat me though." I smirked. "How's Ruby?"

"Oh! She's been doing great! Even made the scythe she wanted."

"Really?!" I asked. "Actually, I think dad said something about helping her with it."

"He did." Yang nodded. "He helped her get all the pieces she needed and helped her make it too."

"Wish I could've seen it before we left."

"Yaaang!?" I heard someone scream.

"Guess I forgot to mention, Ruby got accepted into Beacon two years early." Yang told me.

"What?!" I turned around as Ruby ran up to us, glaring at Yang.

"You left me back there!" she growled.

"No, I came over here because I saw Liam." Yang replied, glancing at me.

"Liam!" Ruby squealed. "I didn't even notice, you look so different!"

"I do?" I rubbed the back of my head.

"It has been almost two years since we last saw you." Yang told me. "You do look a bit different and your voice is deeper."

"Really?"

"Your hair is longer, too." Ruby added. "I never noticed how much your hair looked like mine."

"Huh?" I pulled a lock of hair in front of my eyes. "Oh yeah, I guess it is kind of like yours...weird."

"Has the red tips and everything!"

"Hmm." I put the lock of hair back and crossed my arms. "How did you get accepted two years early?"

"I'm...not sure." Ruby replied. "I met Professor Ozpin a few days ago after a fight with that Torchwick guy. He asked me if I wanted to join his school and...here I am."

"That was...nice of him." I said with a shrug. I glanced behind her and noticed something red sticking to her back. "That your scythe?"

"Yep!" she pulled it in front of her. "It's also a high caliber sniper rifle!"

I whistled. "Not bad."

"Uncle Qrow helped me with it." she added.

"Yang told me."

"Heeey." Yang turned me to face her. "What's that?!" she asked, pointing at my katana.

"I made this a few months after we last saw each other." I replied. "Has much more reach than these." I reached into my pocket and pulled out my brass knuckles, showing them to her before putting them back. "I still use them."

Yang grunted. "I wanted to beat you in hand-to-hand."

"Fine. In sparring class, I'll use my knuckles instead of my katana, deal?"

"Deal!"

I glanced out the window to see Beacon quickly approaching. "About time."

End of chapter 3


	4. Chapter 4

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV

I took a step out of the airship but was immediately pushed aside as some blonde guy pushed passed me, throwing up into a trash can.

"Dude." I walked passed him, along with Ruby and Yang. "So-"

I was interrupted by a loud gasp from Ruby. "Look at all these weapons! He has a collapsible staff! She has a fire sword!"

Me and Yang glanced at each other before I pulled on Ruby's hood as she tried to walk off.

"Hey!"

"You need to calm down a bit." I told her. "They're just weapons."

"Just weapons?!" Ruby repeated. "They're an extension of ourselves. They're so cool."

"Aren't you happy with yours?" Yang asked.

"Of course I'm happy with Cresent Rose." Ruby replied, hugging her scythe. "It's just...weapons are like meeting new people...but better."

"I'm sure you'll make plenty of friends." I told her as I ruffled her hair. I turned around and started to walk away.

"Where are you going?!" Ruby shouted.

"To make some friends." I yelled back. "See you guys later."

I turned a corner and started to walk down the pathway, heading to the auditorium.

It didn't take me long to find it and walk inside, waiting for the other first year students to walk in.

An hour later

"Hey!" Yang slid next to me. "You're not an easy one to find in a crowd."

"If I knew you were looking, I would've made myself easier to spot."

Yang chuckled. "Oh! Hey, Ruby!"

I looked in her direction to see Ruby walking over to us. "So, how's your first day going?" I asked her.

"You mean since you both ditched me and I exploded?!" Ruby growled.

"Yeesh, meltdown on the first day already?" Yang asked.

"No, I literally exploded!" Ruby replied. "There was a girl shouting at me, and I exploded! There was fire and a little bit of ice and I just wanted her to stop yelling."

"You!" a girl in all white growled at Ruby.

"It's happening again!" Ruby yelped as she jumped into Yang's arms.

"You're lucky we weren't blown off the side of the school!"

"Oh my god, you really exploded." Yang said.

"It was an accident. It was an accident!" Ruby said as she stood up. The girl in white held out a pamphlet. "What's this?"

"The Schnee dust company is not responsible for any injuries or damages sustained while operating a Schnee dust company product." the girl replied. "Although not mandatory, the Schnee family highly encourages their customers to read and familiarize themselves with this easy-to-follow guide to dust application and practice in the field."

"Uhhh..."

"You really want to start making things up to me?" she asked.

"Absolutely!"

"Read this and don't ever speak to me again." she handed Ruby the pamphlet.

"Are all Schnees like this?" I asked.

She glared at me. "And what are you, her brother?"

"Cousin."

"Really?!" she looked kind of shocked. "The two of you look...almost identical."

Me and Ruby glanced at each other and shrugged. "O...kay?"

"Look, uh...it sounds like you two got off on the wrong foot!" Yang said. "Why don't you just start over and try to be friends, okay?"

"Yeah! Great idea, sis!" Ruby held her hand out to the Schnee. "Hello, Weiss! I'm Ruby! Want to hang out? We can go shopping for school supplies!"

"Yeah, and we can paint our nails, and try on clothes, and talk about cute boys, like tall, blonde, and scraggly over there!" she pointed to the barf boy. He perked his head up.

"Oh wow, really?"

"...No."

"With the way you said that, I don't know if anyone would want to hang out with you, Ruby." I told her. "Not exactly a good impression."

She punched my shoulder. "Jerk."

I shrugged. "I take it back." Weiss said. "You are definitely not blood related to this girl."

"Uhm...okay?"

"Ahem..." Ozpin stepped up to the mic on stage. "I'll keep this brief. You have traveled here today in search of knowledge. To hone your craft and acquire new skills. And when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you and all I see is wasted energy in need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step."

Ozpin walked off stage as another professor took the mic, professor Goodwitch.

"You will gather in the ballroom tonight. Tomorrow your initiation begins. Be ready. You are dismissed!"

"That was...strange." I said to the others.

"It was like he wasn't even there." Ruby added.

"I'm a natural blonde, you know!"

I glanced to my right to see barf boy talking to Weiss who face palmed.

"I feel like you just dug a grave." I told Weiss with a smirk.

"The sudden regret is already starting to sink in." she replied.

I stretched. "I'm going to head over to the ballroom now." I told the others. "See ya."

A few hours later, Ballroom

I laid out my sleeping bag and laid down. "Is...this spot taken?"

I glanced up to see Weiss holding her sleeping bag by her side, a slight blush on her face. She gestured to the empty spot next to me.

"Not at all."

She laid out her sleeping bag a few inches away from mine and laid down. "Beautiful night, don't you think?"

"Yeah." I rolled onto my back and stared at the ceiling. "Peaceful, too."

I saw Weiss smile out of the corner of my eye before rolling onto her side, her back turned to me.

I was about to close my eyes when a loud thud made me sit up, scanning the room. I saw the source of the sudden noise, Yang and Ruby playfully fighting.

Weiss growled as she stood up, stomping off towards the duo. "What is wrong with you?!" I heard her growl. "Can't you see some of us are trying to sleep."

 _"Oh, no."_

I got to my feet and walked over. "Not you again!" Weiss and Yang shouted at each other.

"Come on guys." I said softly. "We need our rest for initiation tomorrow."

"They're right." Ruby said.

"Now you're on my side!" Weiss growled.

"I was always on your side!" Ruby replied.

"Yeah, what's your problem with my sister?!" Yang asked.

"She's a hazard to my health!"

"Shut up!" I shouted as the candle light was blown out. "Can all of you please be quiet and go to sleep?!" Silence was my response. "Thank you!"

I went to walk back to my sleeping bag but tripped over someone in the darkness. "What the hell, man?!"

"Son of a bitch!" I growled as I sat up. "Sorry about that."

He sighed. "It's fine."

I found my sleeping bag and laid down, falling asleep quickly.

End of chapter 4


	5. Chapter 5

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV, locker room

I opened my locker and pulled out my brass knuckles, glock and katana, placing the glock in it's holster, the katana in it's sheath on my back and my brass knuckles in my pockets.

"You seem ready for anything." Yang said as she walked over to me.

Shrugging, I closed my locker. "It's good to be prepared."

"I never said it wasn't."

I turned to face her. "After we both pass, in sparring class, you, me, see who's better?"

"Been looking forward to it since we came here." she grinned. "I'm gonna win!"

"We'll see about that." I smirked. "So, you want me to use my katana or brass knuckles?"

"Brass knuckles." she replied. "I want to see if your hand-to-hand combat got rusty."

"Good." I walked passed her. "Tell Ruby I said-"

"Tell me what?" Ruby asked as she closed her locker.

"That I wish you luck in initiation." I replied. "Hoping you'll get on the same team as Yang?"

"Or you." she added. "I...don't really know anyone here."

I ruffled her hair as I walked by her. "I'll keep a lookout for you then."

"Thanks."

A few minutes later, Beacon Cliff

All first year students stood on launch pads, waiting to be launched into the Emerald Forest.

Ozpin stood in front of us. "For years you have trained to become warriors. And today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest."

"Now, I'm sure all of you have heard rumors about the assignment of teams." Goodwitch said. "Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates...today."

"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon." Ozpin said. "So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well. That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years. After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path, or you will die. You will be monitored and graded for the duration of your initiation. But our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose one, and return to the top of the cliff. We will regard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?"

Barf boy raised his hand. "Uhm, sir?"

"Good! Now, take your positions."

I readied myself as I heard my launch pad click before sending me skyward, into the forest.

Using my semblace, I turned into a crow and quickly flew towards a nearby tree, changing back and landing on a branch. "Not the flashiest landing."

I jumped down and rolled to my feet as I hit the ground. I brushed myself off as I started walking further into the forest.

It was pretty quiet in the forest, except for a few gunshots from other students and the rustling of leaves as I walked. I passed through some bushes and immediately came face-to-face with a half dozen Beowolves.

I quickly pulled out my katana and readied myself as the first Beowolf lunged. Rolling to the side, I got up and took the chance to cut it in half, using the button to boost my swing.

The other Beowolves all lunged at me. I jumped over the first one, slicing it's back as I passed over it, and sliding under the second as I landed. I pulled out my glock and shot at a Beowolf that was in front of me before putting the gun away as the Beowolf turned to dust.

I was about to turn around when a sudden hit sent me into a nearby tree. I hit my back and fell to my knees. Getting to my feet, I readied my blade as they all charged at me. I smirked as they lined up perfectly.

Swinging at them, I pressed the button on the hilt and felt the blade slice through them all with ease.

I held my blade in front of my eyes, glancing at it. "Hm." I sheathed the weapon before continuing through the forest.

A few minutes later, Ruined Temple

As I walked towards the relics, I noticed they were chess pieces. I picked up the white king piece and turned to leave.

As I started making my way towards the cliff, I heard a low growl from behind me.

"Beowolf." I whispered as I turned to face the Grimm. An Ursa was staring at me. "...or...not."

It brought its paw back and I quickly rolled to the side as it brought it down.

"Alright." I reached behind me to pull out my katana but stopped. Instead, I reached into my pockets and wrapped my fingers around my brass knuckles, readying my fists as the Ursa moved closer to me.

It swung at me and I quickly jumped over its arm, making the blades come out of my brass knuckles and stab its arm as I landed on the ground. It took a step back before crouching down on all fours, ready to pounce.

"Come on then." I taunted as I beckoned it. It pounced and I quickly ducked under it, slicing its chest as it passed over me.

Barring its teeth, it readied itself to pounce again. I turned one of my brass knuckles around so I held one of the blades backwards.

The Ursa pounced and I quickly jumped over it, stabbing the blade into its back and using my momentum to swing around so I was facing its back. I grabbed its shoulder with my free to steady myself before reaching around and slicing its neck with my other blade.

The Grimm turned to dust as I pulled my blade out of its back, placing both of the brass knuckles back in my pockets.

"That was fun." I turned towards the cliff and started making my way back.

A few minutes later

"Ruby Rose. Blake Belladonna. Weiss Schnee. And Yang Xiao Long. The four of you retrieved the white knight pieces. From now on you will be known as team RWBY, led by...Ruby Rose." Ozpin said.

The 4 walked off the stage.

"Liam Branwen and Annie Leonhart, please come to the stage." Ozpin said to the crowd. Me and the other student slowly walked up the steps, standing in front of Ozpin. "You two retrieved the white bishop pieces but failed to find a partner. However, there are two more students who have failed to retrieve a relic. Mina Carolina and Rico Brzenska, please come to the stage."

Two more students joined us, one of them had white, kind of grey, hair and glasses. The other had black hair and had a kind aura around her.

"Since you four failed to find a relic or a partner, you will form a team." Ozpin continued. "From here on you will be known as team AMBR (Amber) led by...Annie Leonhart."

End of chapter 5

(Annie, Rico and Mina are characters from Attack on Titan. I claim no ownership to these characters or the RWBY story and characters)


	6. Chapter 6

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV, team AMBR's room

"So, what should we do?" Mina asked, breaking the silence.

Annie shrugged.

Rico had already started studying her classes and I was laying in my bed, staring at the ceiling.

Mina sighed. "I get the feeling none of you like to talk."

Annie shrugged again.

"You three should study for your classes." Rico told us. "Wouldn't want to fail your first assignment."

I sat up. "Yeah."

I got off my bed and walked over to one of the desks to start studying.

A few hours later

It had gotten pretty late, so I put away all of my things and walked over to my bed.

"Goodnight." Mina said.

"Night." Rico replied.

Me and Annie stayed quiet. I rolled onto my side and closed my eyes.

The next day

"Get up." Annie said coldly, causing my eyes to open slowly.

I got out of bed and looked at the blonde. "Eager to get to class?" I asked as I checked the time. "It's five."

She tossed my uniform at me. "Get changed."

"Alright..."

My teammates left the room so I could change in private.

I quickly changed and sprayed some cologne on before opening the door. "Now what?"

"What's that smell?" Rico asked.

"Smells nice." Mina added.

"We're going to study." Annie told me.

She pushed passed me and sat down at one of the desks.

I sat down at one of the other desks but fell backwards as the chair tipped over.

"Great way to start the day." Rico said sarcastically.

"Shut up." I told her as I got to my feet.

"Hm." I glaced over to see Annie watching me.

"What?"

"Nothing." she replied as she turned around.

A few hours later

"Time to go." Annie said as she stood up.

I yawned as I joined them at the door. "Let's go then."

A few minutes later, Port's class

We sat at the back row just as Port started teaching. "Welcome, students." he said. "Today, I will show you-" he was interrupted as the door burst open to 8 other students, teams JNPR and RWBY.

"Sorry we're late!" Ruby said. "We-"

"Make sure it doesn't happen again." Port said before she could continue. "Take your seats."

Ruby and her team walked to the front of the room and sat in the front row. Port continued with his lesson, which was just him talking about his youth.

I rested my head on my hand while I paid attention. I glanced down at the front row and saw Ruby messing around.

"The morale of the story?" Port said, grabbing my attention again. "A true huntsman must be honorable. A true huntsman must be dependable. A true huntsman must be strategic. Well-educated...and wise! So, who among you believes themselves to be the embodiment of these traits?"

Weiss raised her hand. "I do, sir!"

"Well then, let's find out." Port said, glancing at a cage beside him. "Step forward, and face your opponent."

Weiss stood up and left the class to go change.

She came back a few minutes later in her combat skirt.

"Gooo Weiss!" Yang cheered.

"Fight well!" Blake added as she waved a team RWBY flag.

"Yeah, represent teeeam RWBY!" Ruby yelled.

"Ruby, I'm trying-" she stopped when she glanced up at me. I looked back at her with confusion as she turned to face the cage.

"Alright." Port said. "Let the match, begin." he raised his weapon and cut the lock off the cage, letting a Boarbatusk rush out.

Weiss swung at the Grimm as she rolled to the side, dodging it. It turned to face and started to charge at Weiss as she lunged at it. As she connected with the Grimm, her weapon somehow got stuck between its tusks.

It jerked its head to the side, throwing Weiss' weapon away before knocking her back. Weiss got to her feet as the Boarbatusk rushed her. She tried to roll out of the way but the Boarbatusk managed to hit her, knocking her into the wall, before pinning her against it, using its tusks to keep her in place.

I quickly jumped over the table in front of me and rushed to Weiss' weapon, picking it up and stabbing the Boarbatusk in its hind leg. It yelped in pain as it jerked back, giving Weiss just enough room to break free.

The Grimm turned to face me as I tossed Weiss her weapon.

I smirked as the Grimm charged at me. As it reached me, a glyph appeared. The Boarbatusk slammed into it and fell on its back, giving Weiss a perfect opportunity to finish it off. She shoved her rapier into the Grimm and watched as it turned to dust.

She stood up and leaned over, taking a deep breath.

"Bravo! Bravo!" Port said. "It appears we are indeed in the presence of a true huntsman and huntress in training. I'm afraid that's all the time we have for today. Be sure to cover the assigned readings and, stay vigilant. Class dismissed."

Weiss glanced at me with a smile before turning to walk out the class.

"Nice job!" Mina said as I joined my team. "You were quick to help her."

"Yeah." I shrugged.

"You should have let her handle it herself." Annie told me. "She said she could."

"That's...pretty harsh." Mina told her. "She needed help."

"Maybe she should have thought about that before taking it on." Annie replied coldly. "Don't bite off more than you can chew."

"She was just a bit unlucky." I told her. "She could have easily beaten it."

"Unlucky?" Annie scoffed. "What happened to _you_ this morning was unlucky. What happened to the Schnee was just a lack of skill."

"She could have handled it if I wasn't in the same room!" I growled at her.

She raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean by that?" Rico asked.

"It's my semblance." I replied as I crossed my arms. "Misfortune. It got passed down to me by my father, Qrow Branwen."

Annie smirked. "I thought so."

"Whatever." I said as I walked out of the class. "Besides, my semblance comes in handy against tough opponents, but the downside is that I don't have much control over it. It targets everyone around me."

"So that's why we got on the same team." Annie said. "I knew it was bad luck."

"Shut up." I smirked.

Annie smirked back but it was pretty hard to notice.

"So, what's next?" Mina asked.

"Dinner then our room." Annie replied.

We walked into the cafeteria and got our food, sitting down at a table by the corner. We started eating as teams RWBY and JNPR joined us.

"Who invited you?" Annie asked them.

"I can already tell you're a bundle of joy." Yang said sarcastically. "Me and Ruby are his cousins." she pointed at me.

"Hm." Annie picked up her tray and moved further down the table, away from us.

"Soooo, how are you, Liam?" Weiss asked.

"Fine." I shrugged. "What about you?"

"I'm good. I actually wanted to thank you for helping me out." she said with a smile. "I still don't know how that Boarbatusk managed to hit me."

Ruby and Yang both glanced at me. "Guess you got a bit unlucky?" Yang asked.

"Yeah." Weiss nodded. "Guess I did."

Ruby chuckled, getting Weiss' attention. "I wonder if Liam's team had any bad luck today."

"Really? You too, Ruby?"

"What are they talking about?" Weiss asked me.

"My semblance." I replied. "I bring misfortune."

"Can't you turn it off?" Blake asked.

"No." I shook my head. "I can't. It was passed down from my father and seems to bring anyone bad luck."

Weiss frowned. "So, I got pinned by that Boarbatusk because of you?" she asked.

"Pretty much."

"Must be hard." Blake said softly. "Having a semblance that brings nothing but bad luck."

"I wouldn't say that." I replied. "It's more annoying than anything else. Besides, it comes in handy when fighting a tough opponent."

"Doesn't stop me from beating you." Yang said with a smirk.

"Didn't Liam win last time?" Ruby asked.

"One time." Yang replied.

"And the time before that?" Ruby added.

Yang frowned. "I may not have won every match, but I have won."

I stood up.

"Where are you going?" Weiss asked.

"My room." I replied slowly. "Why?"

"Oh."

"O...kay." I walked out of the cafeteria and back to my dorm. I opened the door and walked in, heading to my bed and falling into it.

"Tired?" Annie asked.

"A bit." I replied as I sat up. "So, what weapon do you use?"

She glanced at me. "A staff."

"A staff?" I repeated.

"Yes, a staff."

"Anything else?" I asked.

She held up her hand and I watched as it was coated in some sort of crystal.

"You can crystallize your skin?" I asked, getting a nod as an answer. "That's a unique semblance."

"Thanks."

"So, you know hand-to-hand combat?" I asked her.

"Yes."

"Got any moves you can teach me?"

"Maybe." she nodded. "I'll show you a few in Goodwitch's class tomorrow."

"Looking forward to it." I smiled.

End of chapter 6


	7. Chapter 7

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV, Goodwitch's class

"Now, is there anyone who would like to volunteer?" Goodwitch asked. I raised my hand. "Mr. Branwen. Who would you like to spar with?"

I saw Yang glance at me with a smirk.

"Annie Leonhart." I replied.

Yang glared at me a bit as I walked passed her. "Next time." she mouthed at me.

Me and Annie walked onto the stage. I pulled out my brass knuckles as she held her fists in front of her.

"Aren't you going to get your weapon?" Goodwitch asked Annie.

"No."

"Very well. 3...2...1 begin!"

Me and Annie slowly circled each other before I rushed forward with a left cross. She moved to the side and used her semblance to coat her fist in crystals as she punched my side, causing me to stumble back.

I stood up straight as Annie slowly circled me. Her eyes held little emotion, as if she was bored.

I slowly took a step towards her before she ran at me, throwing a left hook which I easily ducked under, only to see her knee rush toward my face, connecting and knocking me on my back.

I got to my feet and held my fists up again.

I rushed towards her and was about to throw a punch but was caught off guard as I noticed a slight smirk cross her face. She lifted her leg and kicked me in the side of the head, using her semblance to crystallize her foot, causing my aura to deplete completely. I flipped over and landed on my back.

"Holy shit!" someone in the crowd said.

I groaned as I sat up. "Damn, Annie." I rubbed my head.

She held her hand out to me and I accepted the help up. "Still want me to show you a few moves?"

"Definitely." I smiled.

"The winner is Annie!" Goodwitch said as we walked off stage. "Sadly, that is it for today. You are dismissed!"

Yang and Ruby quickly ran beside me. "How did you lose?!" Ruby asked.

"He's just rusty." Yang smirked.

"We'll see next time." I replied. "She was just...too fast. Her reaction time was quick, too."

"Whatever you say." Yang replied.

I brushed it off as we walked towards the cafeteria. "So, you make any friends, Ruby?"

"Yeah!" she chirped. "Weiss, Blake, team JNPR."

"Weiss didn't seem too interested in being your friend, what changed?" I asked.

"I'm...not sure." she shrugged. "But she's been a lot nicer."

"That's good to hear." I smiled.

"What about you?" she asked me. "Having nothing but girls for teammates must be pretty distracting."

"Nah, not really." I shrugged. "I don't see them like that."

"Hmm, so you have your eye set on someone?" she smirked.

"I never said that." I rolled my eyes. "Besides, I'm not really looking for a relationship. I'm here to get the skills I need to become a Huntsman, and if I do get in a relationship, that's a plus."

"What about Annie?" Yang asked. "A girl that can kick your ass is hard to come by. Seeing you two together would be an interesting couple."

I glanced at her out of the corner of my eye. "Ha! Okay."

Yang shrugged. "What about Mina? She seems nice."

"Nope." I shook my head. "She's like the little sister type."

"Rico?" Ruby asked. "She seems smart."

"Guys, we're not playing match-maker here." I told them. "So cut it out."

"What type of girl are you interested in?" Yang asked.

"Does it matter?"

"Humor me." she crossed her arms.

I sighed. "I don't know...maybe someone like Weiss."

"Weiss?!" Ruby yelled with a smile.

"What?" I asked. "Tough, fast, pretty, intelligent. I don't know, she just stands out to me."

"I'm gonna tell Weiss!" Ruby said right before she ran off.

"Al...right." I turned to Yang. "What about you?"

"I just want to hurry up and beat your ass in a fight." she smirked.

"You mean, you can't wait for me to beat you in a fight?" I asked.

"After what Annie did?" she smiled. "I'm pretty sure I can handle you."

"We'll see."

End of chapter 7


	8. Chapter 8

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV

"It was in the middle of the night." Nora said as I sat down.

"It was day." Ren corrected.

"We were surrounded by Ursai."

"They were Beowolves." Ren corrected again.

"Dozens of them!"

Ren sighed. "Two of 'em."

"Me and Ren took them down and made a boat load of Lien selling Ursa skin rugs!" Nora continued with a smile.

"She's been having this dream for nearly a month."

"Uh-huh." I raised an eyebrow as I glanced down the table. "Sup Jaune."

"Huh?" he glanced at me. "Oh, hey."

"What's on your mind?" Pyrrha asked.

"Nothing." Jaune replied with a sigh. He glanced behind him and I followed his gaze.

"Ouch, that hurts!" a Faunus yelped as her rabbit ears were tugged on.

"I told you they were real!" Cardin said with a chuckle.

"Hey, why don't you leave her alone, dick biscuit?!" I shouted at him.

He turned around to see me glaring at him. "Ooh, we got a tough guy." he let go of the Faunus a stood up.

"Bullying Faunus?" I asked with venom in my voice. "Pathetic. Picking on someone because they're unique." I walked around the table and towards him.

"That's some big talk, coming from a guy who got his ass kicked by a girl." he mocked.

"What'll that make you when I kick your ass?" I smirked, putting my fists up.

"Heh!" he chuckled. "I'll beat your ass easily." he ran at me and threw a punch, only for me to duck to the side and watched as he tripped over a bench.

"Off to a great start!"

He got to his feet and ran at me again. As he reached me, I pulled my fist back and punched him in his jaw, making him stumble back.

I kicked him in his gut, making him fall backwards. "You're putting up one helluva fight!" I said sarcastically.

He punched the ground as he got to his feet. He barred his teeth and growled as we slowly started circling each other.

With each step I took, I got a bit closer.

Annie's POV

I sat next to Yang as I watched the fight between Cardin and Liam. I smirked as I watched Liam knock Cardin around like he was nothing.

Liam kicked Cardin down and started to slowly circle each other as Cardin got to his feet.

I noticed Liam was getting closer to Cardin before he lifted his foot and kicked him in the side of his head, causing Cardin to flip over and land on his back. _'Did...did he pick that up from me?'_

Liam's POV

I looked down at Cardin. "So, anything else negative you have to say about Faunus?" I asked him.

He wiped the blood from his lip as he stood up. "Fuck you!"

"Ooh, sounds fun!" I said with sarcasm. "I wonder if your mother would think the same." Cardin clenched his fists and took a step towards me. "Easy, Fido. Wouldn't want me to teach you another lesson in politeness, would you?"

He glared at me before turning around to leave.

"Ah ah ah." I said before he could take a step towards the exit. "I think you have something to say to this nice girl, don't ya think?"

He turned around, glaring at me before the Faunus. "Bitch!"

I winced, not for her but for him. "Man, you have no idea how badly you just fucked up." I clenched my fists and took a step towards him, his team not moving an inch to help.

He turned to run but tripped over something, landing on his stomach. I walked over and knelt down, wrapping my hand around the back of his neck and pulling him towards the Faunus. I yanked his head back so he could look her in the eye.

"I'm so sorry to disturb you." I said to her. "But I couldn't help but notice this piece of shit was...a bit hurtful." I stared down at Cardin. "What do you say?"

He was quiet.

"I'm sorry." I said to the Faunus before violently yanking Cardin's head back and forth a bit. "It would appear his tongue isn't working." I bent down to stare into Cardin's eyes. "I'll tell you only one. More. Time. What do you say to this nice girl?"

I dug my fingers into his neck, making him wince. "I'm sorry!" he yelped.

"For?"

"For calling you a bitch!" he winced again.

"And?"

"For making fun of and tugging on your ears!" he yelped.

"Now complement her!" I growled.

"You have...b-beautiful hair..?"

"Good." I shoved his head into the ground. He scrambled to his feet and ran out of the cafeteria, his team following close behind. I turned to face the Faunus. "You okay?"

"Y-yes." the Faunus nodded. "Thank you for standing up for me."

I shrugged. "I don't like people who pick on Faunus."

"Are you a Faunus?" she asked.

"Heh, no." I shook my head. "But some people would consider me to be a Faunus."

"Huh?" she asked confused.

"I'll show you later." I replied. "What's your name?"

"Velvet."

I held my hand out to her. "Liam...Branwen." she held her hand out and I gently took it, kissing the back of her hand.

She blushed a bit and smiled. "T-thank you again." she gathered her things and headed for the exit.

"If Cardin gives you any more trouble, feel free to ask me to deal with him." I told her.

I heard a sharp gasp and turned to see Ruby staring at me, wide-eyed.

"That was soooo cool!" she squealed.

"Thanks..?" I rubbed the back of my head.

"You said some people would consider you to be a Faunus." Blake said. "What'd you mean by that?"

"I'll show you later." I glanced over the table to see Annie glancing at me out of the corner of her eye.

"I see you picked up that move rather quickly." she said softly.

"Huh? Oh, right!" I chuckled. "Guess I should thank you."

"No need." she stood up. "If you want, I'll show you a few more moves."

"Thanks, I'll be sure to-"

"Mr. Branwen!" Goodwitch's voice boomed.

"Yeah?"

"Ozpin's office. Now!" she ordered. "You too, Ms. Xiao Long. Ms. Rose."

"What'd we do?" Yang asked but was ignored as Goodwitch walked away. Yang glared at me. "If we're in trouble because of you, I will hurt you."

"Eh." I shrugged as I started making my way towards Ozpin's office.

A few minutes later

The elevator doors opened with a ding. "Ah, you three finally arrived."

"We're not in trouble, are we?" Ruby asked.

"No, no." Ozpin shook his head. "Please, sit." we did as told and sat in front of his desk. "I understand you and Mr. Winchester had a bit of a...misunderstanding in the cafeteria."

"He was picking on a Faunus, so I showed him what dirt tastes like." I replied simply.

"Which student was Mr. Winchester picking on?" Ozpin asked.

"Velvet. I don't know her last name." I told him.

"Ah, Ms. Scarlatina." Ozpin said as he took a sip of coffee. "She has had some difficulties with bullies. Anyways, as for why I asked you three to come here is because I have some news you might want to hear."

"Ok?" Yang said slowly. "What is it?"

"It's more about Liam and Ruby. But I thought you might want to know, seeing as how you're related." Ozpin said to Yang.

"Can you tell us?" I asked impatiently.

"Very well." Ozpin glanced at his cup of coffee. "Mr. Branwen, Ms. Rose, do you remember the first thing I ever said to you?"

Me and Ruby glanced at each other. "You have silver eyes." Ruby replied.

"You have a silver eye." I said.

End of chapter 8


	9. Chapter 9

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV

Ozpin nodded slowly. "I told you two this because you both inherited this trait from your mother."

"Uhm, sir, you do know me and Ruby don't have the same mom, right?" I asked him. "Why did you say 'mother' instead of 'mothers'?"

I expected Ozpin to chuckle and correct himself but he just sat there, his face showing the same emotion mere seconds ago. He was dead serious.

"This must be confusing news for you both." he told us.

Me and Ruby glanced at each other. "You're saying...me and Liam are siblings?" she asked.

"Yes." Ozpin nodded.

I got out of my chair, running both of my hands through my hair. "You're my brother!" Ruby said happily.

"Son of a bitch!" I yelled as I kicked the chair across the room.

"Liam?" Ruby said softly. "Aren't you happy?"

"Are you fucking joking?!" I turned to Ozpin. "You're saying my mom was Summer Rose?!"

"Yes." he nodded.

I chuckled. "You have got to be kidding!"

"Liam...what's wrong?" Ruby asked worried. "Shouldn't you be happy?"

"No!" I yelled. "I never knew who my mother was growing up! I never had a mother! And now you're saying she was in my life from the start and yet no one decided to tell me?!"

"Liam, calm down." Yang said.

"I know you're angry, but please, try to calm down." Ozpin said.

"No!" I punched his desk. "I have a million things I want to tell her but I can't because she's fucking dead!"

"Liam." Ruby said softly. I could hear the tears in her voice. "You-"

She wasn't able to finish as I turned into my bird form and flew out the window, heading towards Beacon cliff.

Ruby's POV

Tears fell down my cheeks as Ozpin sighed. "Qrow didn't want me to tell him but he needed to know."

"Why?" Yang asked him.

Ozpin took a sip from his coffee. "You two should go comfort him."

Liam's POV

I landed on the cliff and rolled to my feet, pulling out my scroll and calling my father.

 _"Yeah?"_ my dad's voice said as he picked up.

"When were you going to tell me?!" I growled.

 _"What?"_

"When were you going to tell me Summer was my mother?!" I replied.

 _"Shit...Oz..."_

"When?!"

 _"It wasn't my idea to hide this from you."_ he replied. _"It was Summer's."_

I wanted to say more but couldn't find the words. "You should have told me!" I shouted before hanging up. "Fuck!"

"Hello?" someone called out as they walked through the bushes. "Oh, hi Liam." Weiss waved. I looked towards the ground. "What's wrong?"

"I...found out who my mother is." I replied.

"Isn't that a good thing?" she asked. "Why do you look...sad?"

"She's dead." I told her. "I had a million things I wanted to say but...I can't, and I will never be able to."

"Liam..."

"You were right, Weiss." I said softly.

"About what?"

"I'm Ruby's brother." I replied. "You were right."

"But I never..." she paused for a second. "I said you looked like Ruby's brother when we first met."

I nodded. "I thought I'd be happy, knowing who my mother was...but to find out she was in my life from the start, not even knowing she was my mother."

"Liam..."

"I...want to talk to her, tell her the things I never had a chance to say." I continued. I shook my head to clear my thoughts. "I'm sorry, Weiss. What's up?"

She stared at me. "You're...crying."

"Huh?" I wiped my eye. "Oh, it's nothing."

She slowly took a step towards me before pulling me into a hug. "I can't imagine what you're going through right now."

I slowly wrapped my arms around her, returning the hug. "Thank you, Weiss. You're a good friend."

I felt her body stiffen for a split second before relaxing. "Yeah..." she said softly, like she was a bit sad. "I'm glad...I could be here for you..."

We slowly pulled away. "Want to head back?" I asked.

"Y-yeah, sure."

Weiss' POV

Me and Liam walked back to Beacon. As we walked, I kept glancing at him every few seconds.

"Weiss." he said softly.

"Yes?"

"I wanted to...nevermind." he replied. "Forget I said anything."

"Oh." I looked at the ground as we walked.

Liam's POV

We got back to the dorms and walked inside. "I'll see you later, Weiss." I turned to head back to my room.

"Oh...right."

"What?" I looked back at her.

"Don't you..." she paused. "Want to talk to Yang and Ruby?"

I nodded. "I guess I should."

She smiled as she let me in her team room.

Ruby's POV

"He has to be around here somewhere." Blake said. Me and Yang had told her what happened.

I sighed. "I don't know why he reacted like that."

Yang glanced at me. "He never really had a relationship with Summer." Yang told me. "And finding out she was his mom, I'm pretty sure anyone would be pissed."

I sighed. I looked over at the door as it slowly opened. Weiss walked in along with...

"Liam!" I got to my feet and pulled him into a hug.

"Hey." he returned the hug. "Sorry I left like that."

I pulled away. "Where did you go?"

"I found him at Beacon cliff." Weiss said. "We talked and I got him to calm down a bit."

"Well, I'm glad you're back!"

Liam rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah." he yawned. "It's kinda late. I'm gonna head back to my room."

"Alright." Yang said.

"Bye, big brother!" I added with a smile.

"Heh." he chuckled as he left.

When the door closed, a sigh was heard from Weiss. "What's wrong?" I asked her.

"It's nothing." she replied.

Liam's POV

I entered my dorm room and walked over to my bed, falling into it.

"Long day?" Rico asked me.

"No." I sat up on my elbows. "Confusing day."

"How so?" Mina asked.

"I don't really want to go into detail." I laid back and closed my eyes. "I'm going to sleep."

"Goodnight." Mina said sweetly.

End of chapter 9


	10. Chapter 10

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV

"Get up!" Annie kicked the side of my bed.

I sat up with a groan. "I'm up."

"Good."

I got out of bed and turned to Annie. "Mina and Rico are out exploring Vale. Want me to teach you some more moves?"

"Yeah." I nodded.

"Then hurry up and change. Meet me in Goodwitch's classroom."

She left the room and closed the door behind her.

A few minutes later

I had changed into a pair of shorts and a white t-shirt. I stood in front of Annie with my fighting stance.

"Alright." she held her fists up. "I'll show you a few counter moves and I want you to repeat them on me."

"Got it."

"Whenever you're ready."

I ran at Annie and threw a punch, only for her to grab my wrist, place her foot behind my leg and trip me. The back of my head hit the ground, dazing me a bit.

"Damn." I sat up. "What was that?"

"An easy counter." she held her hand out to me. "Get up." I accepted the help up and stood in front of her. "I'll show you what I did. Give me your arm."

I lifted my arm and she took it in her hands. She pulled me a bit towards her and placed her foot behind my leg before pushing me back as she pulled her leg towards her, slowly, making sure I didn't fall.

"Now try it on me."

"Alright." I nodded.

She took a few steps back before running at me with a left cross. I grabbed her arm and did as she shown me, tripping her onto her back.

"You're a quick learner." she held her arm out to me and I helped her up. "Want to try something a bit more difficult?"

"What?"

She took a few steps back and held one arm out in front of her, her palm facing me. Her other hand was closer to her body.

"Whenever you're ready."

I ran at her and threw a right cross. She grabbed my fist, spun around, and flipped me over her onto my back. She pressed her foot against my chin and twisted my arm, locking me in place.

I tapped her leg twice and she released my arm. "Think you can do it first try?" she asked as she helped me up.

"Maybe."

I took a few steps back and got in the same stance she had been in. "Ready?" she asked.

"Ready."

She ran at me and threw a right hook, catching me off guard a bit. I quickly grabbed her arm and turned around, flipping her over me and pressing my foot against her chin, twisting her arm. She chuckled as she tapped my leg twice.

"Good job." I helped her to her feet.

"Thanks." I smirked. "Anything else?"

"Maybe." She took a few steps away from me and put her fists up. "Rush me."

I did as told. As I reached her, I threw a punch, only for her to easily block it and quickly jab my ribs. I threw another punch and she ducked under it, punching my leg and causing me to stumble to my knee. I tried to get up but felt her kick my chin, knocking me onto my back and breaking my aura.

"Try it on me." she said. "This will be a bit difficult because you have to be quick."

I nodded as I took my stance. Annie ran at me and threw a punch. I blocked it with my forearm and jabbed her side. She quickly recovered and threw another punch, hitting me in my jaw.

I winced. "Damn." I fell onto my side as blood trickled down my lip.

She glanced at me. "Maybe we should try again tomorrow. Your aura is depleted."

"Yeah." I rubbed my jaw as she helped me to my feet. "I'm gonna head into Vale, see what's new."

"I'll head back to our dorm, do...something to pass the time."

"Thanks, Annie." I said before leaving the classroom and heading back to our dorm to change.

A few minutes later

I stood in front of the mirror as I straightened my jacket.

"How can Ruby wear so much red?" I asked myself. "It's kind...boring."

"It looks good on you." Mina said from the doorway.

"You think?" I asked.

"Matches your hair style. But maybe try a zip-up hoodie with a black T?" Mina added. "Too much Red is boring."

"Huh." I took off my hoodie and white T and put on a red zip-up with a black T-shirt.

"Better." she walked over to me and ran a hand through my hair, slicking it to the side a bit. "Much better."

I took a step away from the mirror to check myself out. I wore, slightly baggy, black jeans and red shoes.

"See you around, Mina." I said as I left the room. I walked out of the dorms and towards Vale.

A few minutes later

"Hey, stop that Faunus!" someone shouted. I glanced behind me to see a monkey Faunus running straight at me. "Hey, you, stop him!"

I took a step to the side and the Faunus ran passed me. He smirked at me as he turned down an alley.

"You coulda stopped him!" the guy giving chase said to me as he passed by. He turned down the same alley and a few seconds later, I heard a loud crash. "Damnit!"

I put my hands in my pockets and walked down the street. I turned a corner and saw RWBY talking to some girl with orange hair.

"Sen-sational!" she yelled. "We can paint our nails, and try on clothes, and talk about cute boys!"

I spun on my heel and started walking away. "Hey, Liam!" Yang shouted, noticing me. "Come talk to Ruby and her new friend!"

"Nope." I walked down the street and turned a corner. I started heading back to Beacon, since it was starting to get a bit late.

A few minutes later

I walked into the dorm and started making my way to my room.

"You want to know why I despise the White Fang?!" I heard Weiss shout as I passed team RWBY's room. "It's because they're a bunch of liars! Thieves! And murderers!"

"Well maybe we were just tired of being pushed around!" Blake shouted.

There were a few seconds of silence before a black blurr rushed passed me.

"Blake! Wait! Come back!" Ruby shouted.

I glanced inside their room. "What was that about?"

"Not now, Liam." Yang said.

"So, Blake was part of the White Fang?" I asked, keeping my voice down a bit.

"It seems that way." Ruby said softly.

"A criminal hiding in plain sight!" Weiss scoffed.

"Let's hear her side before we jump to conclusions." I told her.

"It's going to be a waste of time!" Weiss crossed her arms. "You'll see."

"Maybe. Maybe not." I replied as I continued my way back to my room.

End of chapter 10


	11. Chapter 11

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

(Let me just make sure there are no confusions, Liam and Ruby are NOT twins. He was born 2 years before Ruby, which is why I'm trying to make him seem a bit more mature than Ruby)

Liam's POV, Vale

"Blaaake?!" Ruby and Yang shouted. "Blaake?! Where are you?!"

Ruby turned around to me and Weiss. "You guys aren't helping!"

"Oh! You know who might be able to help help?" Weiss asked. "The police."

"Weiss." Ruby growled.

"It was just an idea!"

"Yeah, a bad one."

"Weiss, I think we should hear her side of the story before we jump to any conclusions." Yang said.

"I think when we hear it, you'll all realize I was right." Weiss replied.

"And I think Weiss' hair looks wonderful today!" a new voice said.

"Ah! Penny! Where did you come from?!" Ruby asked her.

"Yeeeah, I'll just be going this way." I pointed behind me and started to walk away.

I put my hands in my pockets as I started heading towards...somewhere.

A few minutes later

I turned down a street as a loud explosion went off, catching my attention. I glanced behind me and saw smoke rise.

I sighed, knowing it was, most likely, Blake.

"Can't anything be easy?" I asked myself. "Damnit." I started running towards the source of the explosion before turning into my bird form and flying the rest of the way.

I changed back as I approached the docks, landing on the roof of a warehouse and glancing over the edge to see Blake fighting Roman.

I jumped down and rolled to my feet, pulling out my brass knuckles as I ran at Roman, throwing a right cross and knocking him back.

"Liam?!" Blake asked, surprised. "What-"

"You don't really have time to talk." Roman said as he shot at me, hitting my chest and knocking me into a White Fang member. "Now that he's out of the way, shall we continue?"

I got to my feet and was about to rush Roman when I felt someone grab my shoulder. I turned around and punched the White Fang member away as a half dozen more surrounded me.

"Very well." I put my brass knuckles away and placed my hand on the hilt of my katana. "Who's first?"

The closest Fang member ran at me, swinging his sword as he reached me. I jumped over him and slashed downwards while I was in midair, pressing the button on the hilt to add a bit more damage. He was knocked back as the other WF members rushed me.

As they closed in on me, someone jumped behind me, pressing their back against mine.

"Need some help?" he asked me.

I glanced back at him. "Thanks."

Another explosion caught my attention as Blake was blasted back.

The Faunus pushed passed the White Fang members to help Blake as I continued to fight.

"Hey!" Ruby yelled from a nearby roof.

"Hey, Red. Isn't it passed your bedtime?" Roman said.

Ruby looked behind her and Roman took the chance to shoot her, knocking her back.

A few seconds passed and the orange haired girl from the other day, walked towards the edge of the building. She stood there for a few seconds before a dozen swords came out of her back. They looked as though they were levitating in the air.

"Uhm." I scratched my head as a White Fang member stepped beside me.

"Never seen something like that before." he said. "Have you?"

I glanced at him before hitting him in the back of the head with the hilt of my katana, knocking him out. "Nope."

She started taking down dozens of Fang members in seconds. "How the hell is she controlling those?"

Two Bullheads flew overhead. A large green laser cut both of the ships in half a few seconds later.

"Damn, dude."

I glanced at Roman to see him board a Bullhead.

I took a running jump and turned into my bird form, flying up and changing back, landing on top of it.

I was about to plunge my katana into the Bullhead to balance myself but the pilot rolled the ship to shake me off. I fell a few feet before turning into a crow and changing back as I flew closer to the ground.

"Damn." I sheathed my katana. "Almost had him."

A few minutes later

"How did you do that?" Blake asked me.

"Do what?"

"Turn into a bird." she replied.

"Oh! It's part of my semblance." I told her. "I can change between a human and a crow."

"Is that what you meant when you said some people might consider you to be a Faunus?"

I nodded. "Faunus, human, I don't really care what people consider me to be."

"I see."

"There you are!" Weiss said as she and Yang approached us.

"Look Weiss, it's not what you think, she explained the whole thing, you see she doesn't actually wear a bow, she has kitty ears and they're actually kind cute." Ruby said as Weiss walked passed her.

"Weiss, I want you to know that I'm no longer associated with the White Fang. Back when I was-" Blake said.

"Stop." Weiss said. "Do you have any idea how long we've been searching for you? 12 hours. That means I've had 12 hours to think about this, and in that 12 hours, I've decided...I don't care."

"You don't care?" Blake repeated.

"You said you weren't one of them anymore, right?"

"No, I-I haven't been since I was younger-"

"Apupupup." Weiss silenced her. "I don't want to hear it. All I want to know is that the next time something this big comes up, you'll come to your teammates, and not..." she glanced at the Faunus. "Someone else."

"Of course." Blake nodded.

"Yeah! Team RWBY is back together!" Ruby shouted.

I smirked as I began to walk away.

"Oh, hey!" the Faunus guy ran up behind me, tapping my shoulder.

"Yeah?"

"You're that guy from a few days ago, right?" he asked.

"Yeah." I nodded. "I guess you got away?"

He smirked. "Why did you let me get away?"

"Because I've seen enough to know that most Faunus are wrongfully accused." I replied. "Besides, the guy chasing you looked like he could use the exercise."

He chuckled. "What's your name?"

"Liam."

"Sun."

I nodded. "See you around." I said as I continued to walk away.

"See ya!" he waved as I made my way back to Beacon.

A few minutes later, Beacon dorms

I walked into my room. "Where have you been?" Mina asked as I stepped inside.

"Helping team RWBY find their teammate." I replied. "Why?"

"Just wondering where you've been all day." she said with a shrug.

"Riiiight." I fell into my bed. "I'm going to sleep."

End of chapter 11


	12. Chapter 12

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV, a few days later, cafeteria

I sat with my team, eating my lunch. "So, what are your guys' plans for our last free day?" Mina asked.

"Training." Annie told her.

"Studying." Rico said.

Mina turned to me. "What about you?"

I shrugged. "I don't really have anything planned."

"Oh. Well maybe we could trai-" she was cut off as everyone started to run out of the cafeteria.

"What's going on?" Rico asked.

"Food fight!" someone yelled as they rushed out of the cafeteria.

"Oh." she gathered her things and walked out of the cafeteria. "I don't want any food getting on my uniform."

"Same." Mina said as she joined Rico.

Annie stood up and left without a word as I continued eating my food.

Teams RWBY and JNPR set up a stack of tables to use as a fort.

"I'M QUEEN OF THE CASTLE!" Nora sang.

"Justice will be swift! Justice will be painful! It will be DELICIOUS!" Ruby shouted as she squeezed a bottle of milk.

"YEAH!" her team agreed.

"Off with their heads!" Nora shouted as she jumped down from her 'castle', throwing a bunch of watermelons at RWBY.

I continued to eat my food as the fight got more intense.

It was pretty crazy. They were using bread as swords, sausage strings as whips, leaks as knives, it was entertaining.

I ducked under the table as a turkey was thrown at me, hitting the wall behind me with a splat. Soda cans were thrown at me by Nora, cleary wanting me to join in.

I caught a can and tapped the top of it a few times before opening it, taking a pretty long sip. I crushed the can and stood up, as Weiss was knocked into a pillar. She fell to the ground, unconscious, as Ruby caught her.

I glanced over the battle and watched as Nora hit Yang through the ceiling with a makeshift hammer out of a watermelon and a metal pole.

Getting to her feet, Ruby glared at JNPR as she ran at them, Pyrrha using her semblance to throw a wave of soda cans at the scythe wielder. Ruby, using her speed, managed to turn the cans against them. She turned into a red blurr as she picked up speed before stopping a few feet away from the wall, her sudden stop caused the wall to dent.

JNPR was knocked into the wall as the soda cans smashed into the four, covering them from head to toe in rainbow colored soda.

They slid off the wall and onto the floor as I took the last bite of my food.

"I love these guys." Sun said. I glanced at him just as Goodwitch barged into the cafeteria, clearly not in a good mood. She used her semblance to put the tables back and fix the damaged room.

"Students, please, do not play with your food." she said as she pushed her glasses up.

Yang fell back into the cafeteria, landing next to her team with a loud thump.

I smirked as I spun on my heel, heading for the exit.

I passed by Sun and...blue, because of his hair. "Hey, Liam." Sun greeted.

"Sup, Sun." I nodded. "Who's the blue haired guy?" I gestured to him.

"My best friend, Neptune." he replied.

"Sup."

"Neptune." I shrugged. "Cool name."

"Thanks."

"I'll catch ya later." I said as I left the cafeteria, heading back to my dorm.

I entered my room and sat down on the edge of my bed. "Couldn't handle the fight?" Rico asked with a smirk.

"I didn't get into it." I replied as I fell back.

"Oh." she shrugged. "Annie and Mina are in the training room if you want to join them."

"Hmph." I left the room and started heading for the library to see if it had any books that might ease my boredom.

A few minutes later

"Hey, Liam!" Ruby called me over as I stepped inside the library.

"Hey." I said as I walked over. I noticed they were playing a board game. "What're you playing?"

"Kingdoms of Remnant." she replied. "Wanna watch? I'm winning."

"Pfft, yeah right!" Yang laughed. "I just defeated your forces with Fatal Feathers!"

Ruby glared at her sister.

"Riiight." I glanced over the board.

"Weiss, your turn."

"I have...absolutely no idea what's going on." Weiss said as she looked over her cards.

"Look, it's easy!" Yang said as she slid over. "You're playing as Vacuo, which means all Vacuo-based cards come with a bonus!"

"That sounds dumb."

"See...you've got Sandstorm, Dessert Scavenge- Oh! Oh! Resourceful Raider!" Yang said. "See now you can take Ruby's discarded air fleet, and put it in your hand!"

"Okay..."

"And since Vacuo warriors have an endurance boost against natural hazards, you could use Sandstorm to take out my ground forces and simultaneously infiltrate my kingdom!" Yang added. "Just know that I will not forget this declaration of war."

"And that means?"

"You're just 3 moves away from conquering Remnant!" Ruby cried.

"YES! FEAR THE ALMIGHTY POWER OF MY FORCES!" Weiss said. "COWER AS THEY PILLAGE YOUR HOMES AND WEEP AS THEY TAKE YOUR CHILDREN FROM YOUR VERY ARMS-"

"Trap card." Yang held up a card.

"Wha-"

Yang ran her hands over the board. "Your armies have been destroyed."

"I hate this game of emotions we play!" Weiss cried as she sat down.

"Stay strong, Weiss." Ruby jumped into her arms. "We'll make it through this together."

"Shut up! Don't touch me!" Weiss cried as she hugged Ruby.

"Alright Blake, you're up!" Yang said.

"Huh?" Blake seemed to be a bit...out of it. "Oh! Uhm... Sorry, what am I doing?"

"You're playing as Vale, trying to conquer the kingdoms of Remnant." Yang replied.

"Right..."

"Hey! Can I play?" Jaune asked as he walked over.

"Sorry Jaune, we've already got 4 people." Ruby replied.

"Besides, this game requires a certain level of tactical cunning that I seriously doubt you possess." Weiss added.

"Uh...you attacked your own navel fleet 2 turns ago." Yang said.

"Bring it on, Ice Queen!" Jaune challenged. "I'll have you know that I've been told I'm a natural born leader."

"By who? Your mother?!" Weiss asked.

"And Pyrrha!"

"Hello again!" Pyrrha shouted from the other table.

"Come on, let me play your hand for a turn!" Jaune pleaded.

"I'm not trusting you with the good people of Vacuo!" Weiss defended.

"Why not?! You've trusted me with way more important stuff before!" Jaune replied. "I mean you told us all that Blake is secretly a Fau-"

Pyrrha quickly covered his mouth. "Fun-loving person whom we all admire and respect!"

Blake glared at us, doubtful.

"Right...that. Ladies, enjoy your battle." Jaune did a bow.

"Sup losers?" Sun asked as he walked over, holding up a peace sign.

"Hey Sun!" Ruby greeted.

"Ruby, Yang, Blake, Liam, Ice Queen."

"Why does everyone keep calling me that?!" Weiss growled.

"I never got the chance to formally introduce you to my old friend." Sun said, gesturing to Neptune who stood beside him.

"Aren't libraries for reading?" he asked.

"Thank you!" Ren shouted.

"Shut up. Don't be a nerd."

"Intellectual. Ok. Thank you." Neptune said. "I'm Neptune." he told everyone else.

"So, Neptune, where are you from?" Weiss asked.

"Haven..." he replied as he walked beside her. "And I don't believe I've caught your name, Snow Angel."

"Ugh." Weiss grimaced. "Please, don't call me that, my name is Weiss."

I held back a chuckle. "Hey, Jaune." I leaned over to him. "Looks like you and Neptune are in the same boat."

"Shut up."

"Pleasure to meet you." Neptune said to Weiss.

"Sure." Weiss looked away, uninterested.

"I never took you as the board-game-playing type!" Sun said to Blake.

"I think I'm done playing, actually." Blake stood up and walked away.

"What's up with Blake?" I asked. "She seems off."

"I'll ask her about it." Ruby replied.

I turned around to see Jaune quickly take Blake's spot at the table. "My turn!" he grinned.

I turned to leave. "You're not sticking around?" Weiss asked.

"I wanted to go see if Annie could teach me anymore moves." I replied. "Rico said she is training with Mina."

Yang smirked. "Those won't help against me."

I shrugged as I headed for the exit.

End of chapter 12


	13. Chapter 13

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV, Goodwitch's classroom, the next day

I stood in front of Annie, my fists at the ready.

She took a few steps to the side before rushing me with a right hook. I pushed her arm away and quickly countered with a straight jab, hitting her jaw and causing her to stumble back.

She regained her stance and we slowly started to circle each other.

I ran at her and threw a left cross which she ducked under. She tried to land an uppercut but I jumped back before lunging forward with a knee to her hip. She stumbled back a few feet before running at me again.

She brought back her left fist but as she reached me, she punched me with her right. She didn't let me recover and threw a barrage of punches at me. I managed to block a few but felt more land on my cheek.

She threw another punch but I managed to grab her arm, spin around and throw her over my shoulder, pinning her down with my foot as I twisted her arm, locking her in place.

I smirked, thinking I won but Annie managed to kick my legs out from under me. I landed on my back and Annie rolled to the side, lifting her heel up and slamming it down where my head was, barely missing as I rolled out of the way.

We got to our feet and ran at each other, not wanting to give the other a chance to recover. We both threw a punch but caught each other's fist with our free hand, ending in a lock.

"You're getting faster." she smirked.

"Or you're getting slower." I replied with my own smirk.

"Heh, yeah ri-" she was cut off as I placed my foot behind hers and tripped her. She landed on her back with a soft thump.

I held my hand out to her and helped her up. "Good fight."

"I still have more wins." Annie told me with a smile.

"I'll catch up soon."

She walked passed me and left the classroom, giving a slight smirk as she passed by.

"Hm." my scroll beeped. I pulled it out of my pocket to see a text from Rico.

 _'Hey, I'm bored. Wanna go get somethin' to drink?'_

 _'Sure.'_

 _'Alright. Do you know a place called "Junior's"?'_ she asked.

 _'Yeah, I know the way.'_

I placed my scroll in my pocket and started making my way there.

A few minutes later

"About time." Rico said as I approached the doors to Junior's.

I shrugged as we walked inside. "So, why ask me out and not Annie or Mina?"

"Because Annie is...Annie and Mina doesn't drink." she replied.

"Hm." I crossed my arms as I followed her inside and towards the bar.

"Hey, Junior." Rico greeted. "Two whiskeys."

"Good to see you again." Junior said with little enthusiasm. "Who's your date?"

"We're not on a date." she told him. "I asked him for a drink is all."

"Hmph." he knelt under the counter and brought out a bottle of whiskey. He filled up two, decently sized, cups and handed them to us.

I picked up the glass and looked it over. "Cheers." Rico said as she lightly tapped her glass against mine before downing the liquid in one gulp.

I pressed the glass against my lips and slowly tilted the liquid into my mouth. I coughed a bit, seeing as how it was my first time drinking something this strong. Dad would give me sips of his flask every now and then but he usually made sure it was filled with something that wasn't as strong.

Rico chuckled at me. "First time drinking?" she asked.

"Yeah." I cleared my throat and took another sip.

"It'll get smoother." she said.

"Hm." I continued to drink the whiskey, coughing a few times before downing the rest.

"Another." Rico said as she tapped her glass with her index finger.

"Hmph." Junior filled the glass to the brim before turning to me.

"Go on." Rico urged him.

He filled my glass up and placed the bottle on the counter.

"Thanks." I took the glass and started to drink. "I didn't know you drank, Rico."

"I don't drink often." she replied. "Besides, it's good to relax sometimes."

"Huh." I held up my empty glass for another round.

"Might want to slow down, kid." Junior said as he filled it up.

"This is my last one." I replied as I slowly downed it.

"Who's your new friend, Rico?" two new voices asked.

Rico turned around to face them. "Hi, Melanie, Miltia." Rico greeted. "This is Liam, my teammate. Liam, this is Melanie," she gestured to the girl in white. "and this is Miltia." she gestured to the girl in red.

"Hey." I waved as I finished my drink and placed the empty glass on the counter.

"Nice to meet you." they said as the two girls took turns shaking my hand.

"Pleasure's all mine." I replied.

"Is it now?" Melanie asked. "Meeting a gentleman is rare nowadays."

"Meeting two stunning women is as well." I added.

They both blushed a bit. "We should get going." Rico said as she pushed herself away from the bar.

"Yeah, it's getting late." I followed her out of the bar. We had just left when two familiar people approached us.

"Rico? Liam?" Yang asked as she joined us. "Out on a date?"

"Nope." I replied. "Just out for a drink."

She sniffed. "I can tell." she smirked. "You smell like whiskey."

I rubbed the back of my head. "I had a few glasses."

"We were just on our way back to Beacon." Rico told the blonde. "What're you doing here?"

"Me and...him..." she pointed at Neptune who stood behind her. "Are going to get some intel out of Junior."

"Sounds fun." I turned to leave. "See ya back at Beacon."

A few minutes later, Vale

"Shit." Rico muttered.

"What?"

"I forgot something." she turned around and started to head back the way we came. "You can head back if you want."

"Alright." I nodded and continued my way to Beacon.

I walked for a few more minutes when I stopped, hearing loud thuds coming further down the street. I squinted my eyes to get a better look and saw a giant robot running directly at me.

I placed my hand on my katana, readying myself in case it attacked.

"RUUUN!" a voice yelled.

I glanced above me to see Sun and Blake running from the robot on the rooftops. "Do they always get in trouble?" I asked myself as the robot got closer to me.

Sighing, I turned around and started to follow Blake and Sun. Taking a running jump, I turned into my bird form, following the duo as they jumped down onto the highway.

I kept up with the robot, trying to find the perfect moment to change back and attack but couldn't see an opening.

I tried to get closer when Neptune came from behind me, stabbing his weapon into the back of it. Sun noticed and tried to help with his semblance, sending two yellow copies of himself at it, which did nothing. Grabbing his bostaff, Sun tried to attack only to get hit by Neptune as he was thrown off the robot, knocking them both off the side of the highway.

I was getting a bit tired following the mech when it suddenly slipped on a sheet of ice and slid off the side of the highway, landing on the ground below.

Team RWBY quickly followed it, getting ready for a fight as I changed back and landed on the top, slashing it a few times before jumping off and landing by Ruby.

"Liam?!" she asked surprised. "Why are you here?"

"A giant robot running around Vale usually means somethings up, especially when it's chasing a member of Team RWBY." I replied.

"We don't get into too much trou-"

"Can we save the chit chat for later?!" Weiss growled.

"Yeah." I pulled my katana off my back.

"Freezerburn!" Ruby yelled.

"Wha-?" I was cut off as Ruby grabbed my hood, pulling me back as Weiss created a sheet of ice. Yang jumped into the air and slammed down on the ice, using a shot from her gauntlets to speed her up, creating a thick mist. If it wasn't for the robot's size and lasers, I wouldn't have been able to spot it.

I ran through the mist, trying to find the perfect moment to attack.

The robot shot at Yang and Blake, knocking them both away. I took the chance to grab my katana and slash at it, doing basically nothing.

"Damn." I sheathed my katana and looked for another opening as RWBY kept it busy.

"Checkmate." Weiss and Blake went in for a synchronized attack.

Weiss and Blake slashed at its ankles. It looked as though they weren't doing a thing until Weiss jammed her rapier into one of the weapons, causing it to malfunction.

They both jumped back as the robot shot a dozen rockets, knocking Weiss away as Blake dodged them. Before Weiss hit the ground, she shot a glyph at Blake's feet. This glyph looked a bit like a clock, and it seemed to enhance Blake's weapon.

She started to glow a slight yellow as the robot shot more rockets, which Blake swung her weapons at, sending a purple wave at them and cutting them in half, creating this huge line of explosions in front of her.

Ruby ran passed Blake. "Ladybug!"

The two started to dash between its feet, slashing as they passed back and forth. The robot shot at them but Ruby and Blake jumped, dodging the shot and came back down, slashing one of its arms off.

Yang took the opportunity to jump on its back, sending shot after shot pointblank, before the mech dashed backwards into a pillar, smashing through it and hitting another, coming to a stop as Yang fell off of it. It turned around and punched her through the pillar.

"YANG!"

Anger surged through me.

I ran at the mech and jumped on top of it, slashing the top with my katana as I ran to the front, before jumping down and grabbing the front of it. I held on as I stabbed my katana into it.

One of the guns aimed at me and shot, hitting me in my chest and knocking me away. I landed on my back and slid next to Ruby.

I sat up just as Yang punched the robots arm, turning it to scrap.

It kicked Yang back, sending her passed us. "Bumblebee!" Blake threw her weapon at Yang. Yang caught it and Blake used Yang's momentum to swing her at the robot. As Yang was about to come into contact, it jumped back.

"We need to slow it down!"

"And how do you propose we do that?" Weiss asked.

"Ice Flower!"

Ruby placed the tip of her scythe into the ground as Weiss created a few glyphs in front of it, allowing Ruby to shoot ice bullets at the robot. As each bullet hit, ice would form, slowing its movements.

Blake swung Yang around for another attack, and this time she hit her target, sending it rolling to the side and turning into nothing but spare parts.

Roman rolled out of the wreck and got to his feet. I didn't give him any time to recover as I quickly ran at him, punching him back.

He slid a few feet away and Yang was about to finish him off with a shot from her gauntlets when a girl jumped in the way, blocking the shot with an...umbrella?

"Ladies. Birdie. Ice Queen." Roman said.

"Hey!" Weiss growled.

"Always a pleasure." he waved. "Neo, if you would."

The girl bowed as I pulled out my glock, firing a few shots but, upon contact, the two turned to glass.

A Bullhead flew overhead a few seconds later with the two inside.

"Fucking coward." I growled as I walked over and picked up my katana from where it lay.

"Guess he got a new henchmen." Yang said.

"Yeah, I guess she really made our plans...fall apart?" Weiss added.

I sighed as Ruby snickered.

"No. Just, no."

"What? But you do it!" Weiss stated.

"There is a time and a place for jokes." Yang replied.

"Was this not it?"

"No, it just wasn't very good." Yang told her.

"Well, at least I'm trying."

"Wait, where are Sun and Neptune?" Ruby asked.

End of chapter 13


	14. Chapter 14

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV

Me and Pyrrha stood in front of Team CRDL.

Sky and Russel started to slowly circle me and Pyrrha. Dove and Cardin stood in front of us, ready for any attack we threw at them.

I glanced at Pyrrha and saw the slightest nod from her. Smirking, I turned to Sky as she turned to Russel. I ran at Sky and slid under his arm as he swung his weapon at me, turning around and kicking his legs out from under him. Cardin tried to catch me off guard but I easily blocked his swing, pushing him back as I slashed at Sky, putting his aura at half.

Sky got to his feet and jumped back as I swung at him again, barely dodging my swing as I turned to Cardin. He went to swing at me as I tried to block, only to have my katana knocked out of my hand by his mace.

"Heh." Cardin chuckled. Thinking he had the upper hand, he went to swing again. I ducked under his attack and uppercutted him as I stood back up, grabbing his mace as he fell backwards, pulling him to his feet as I swung my free hand at him. The force of my punch knocked Cardin away, losing his grip on his weapon.

I tossed it aside and held up my fists.

"Liam!" Pyrrha shouted. I glanced behind me as Sky lunged forward, his weapon raised. He was about to attack when a shield hit the side of his head, causing him to stumble a bit before regaining his stance, turning to face Pyrrha.

I turned back to Cardin and felt him hit my gut before kicking my chin, causing me to fall onto my back.

I sat up with a slight groan as Cardin picked up his mace, raising it high above his head before bringing it down. I rolled to the side, barely missing the attack, and kicked the back of his legs, causing his knees to buckle. I quickly got to my feet and punched Cardin, blocking each punch that came my way.

He tried to break through my defense but it was no use. I grabbed his arm, as he threw another punch, spun around and flipped him over my back, twisting his arm as I placed my foot on his chin. He tried to squirm out of my grip but I wouldn't let him go.

"And that's the match." Goodwitch said. I glanced around to see Sky, Russel and Dove knocked out by Pyrrha. "I know that is a tough act to follow but we have just enough time for one more match."

Goodwitch scanned the crowd as I let go of Cardin.

"Ms. Belladonna." she said, getting Blake's attention. "You have been rather docile for the passed few classes. Why don't you-"

"I'll do it." someone said as they raised their hand.

"Mercury, is it?" Goodwitch said. "Very well. Let's find you an opponent."

"Actually, I want to fight...him." he pointed at me.

"I'm afraid Mr. Branwen has already finished a match. I suggest you pick another opponent." Goodwitch said.

"It's fine." I said as I looked at him. "If he wants to fight me, let him."

Goodwitch sighed. "Very well."

Mercury walked down and stood in front of me, holding his fists up.

"Hm." I noticed he didn't bring out a weapon. I held up my fists as Goodwitch counted down.

"3...2...1 begin."

Mercury ran at me, lifted his leg and kicked me a few times in my side. I blocked his attacks and pushed him back by punching his chest.

He slid a few feet away. "Hm." he shrugged before running at me again.

As he reached me, he went for another kick but I jumped back, dodging his attack, before lunging forward with a right hook. I managed to land the hit and quickly punched again.

He blocked the punch and kicked my gut before lunging forward with a right cross. I ducked to the side and grabbed his arm, placing my leg behind his and tripped him. He fell to the ground but quickly got to his feet and backflipped away.

He went for another attack but I quickly countered with a right hook to his jaw, knocking him away.

I ran at him and as I reached him, he turned to Goodwitch.

"I forfeit."

I slid to a halt. "Seriously?"

He shrugged.

"Alright." Goodwitch pressed a few buttons on her scroll. "Mr. Branwen is the victor. I suggest you think a bit harder before choosing an opponent." she told Mercury.

"I'll do that." he said as he walked away.

A few minutes later

I was walking with Team RWBY, heading back to the dorms.

"Hey, Blake!" Sun called out as he ran over to us. "So, I hear there's this dance coming up, sounds pretty lame, but I'm thinking, you and me, not as lame, huh?"

"What?"

"The dance, this weekend, you wanna go or what?" he asked.

"I don't have time for a stupid dance." Blake replied. "I thought you of all people would get that." she walked away as Sun looked down.

I wanted to say something but couldn't find the words. Sun sighed after a few seconds and walked away.

"We can't let Blake miss the dance." Weiss said.

"Yeah!" Yang agreed.

"Speaking of the dance, do you have someone to go with?" Ruby asked me.

"Nope." I shook my head.

"Oh."

"Well, I have to go." I told them. "I'll see you guys later."

A few hours later, the dorms

I had just gotten back from studying with Rico in the library. I was about to enter my room when I heard a guitar followed by "Weeeeiiissss."

I poked my head around the corner to see Jaune holding a guitar in front of Team RWBY's dorm room. The door was slammed shut and Jaune started knocking, trying to get them to open the door by saying he wouldn't sing.

I saw the door open and Jaune immediately started to strum the guitar. "I liiiiieeed!"

I slowly walked over and leaned against the wall, wanting to see where this was about to go.

"Weiss Schnee, will you accompany me, to the dance on...sunday?" he sang.

"Are you done?" I heard Weiss ask.

"Yes?"

"No." she shut the door.

"That time in the locker room, the library, just now."

"What are you doing?" Jaune asked me.

"Counting all the times you got turned down by Weiss." I replied.

He sighed. "I don't understand."

"Clearly." I chuckled. "Sorry to be blunt but...she doesn't like you."

"Yeah." he nodded slowly. "She's just so...amazing."

"There's always Pyrrha." I told him. "She seems to like you a bit."

"Yeah right." he sighed again. "I highly doubt she'd go for someone like me."

"Jesus." I sighed. "Jaune, she doesn't want someone like you because she wants YOU!" I stated. "She shows it every time she's around you, and you never notice. Seriously, I didn't want to just say this because I wanted her to open up about how she feels but you're so focused on Weiss you don't see Pyrrha."

He looked up at me. "Really?!"

"Yes!" I nodded. "Now, ask her out to the dance and I guarantee she'll be more than happy about it."

"Right." he smiled. "Right!"

I sighed as he walked into his room.

I turned around and started to head back to my room.

End of chapter 14


	15. Chapter 15

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV, a few hours later

I was sitting on a bench by the fountain, letting the gentle breeze blow through my hair. I closed my eyes, letting my mind drift as the peacefulness around me calmed me even more than I already was.

"Hi, Liam." a voice said, causing me to open my eyes in curiosity of who it was. Weiss stood in front of me with a soft smile. "Is this spot free?" she glanced at the spot next to me.

"Yeah." I gestured to it. "Sit." she did as I offered and sat down next to me.

"Beautiful night, don't you think?" she asked me.

"Relaxing, too." I added with my own smile. "What brings you out here?"

"I...actually wanted to ask you something." she rubbed her arm nervously.

"What?"

"Would you...like to accompany me to the dance?" she looked down, embarrassed and nervous of my answer.

I was a bit taken back. "You want to go with me?"

She slowly nodded. "I-if you don't mind."

I rubbed the back of my head. "Yeah! Sure!"

She smiled. "Really?! I mean, uh, I'll see you there."

She stood up and walked away, disappearing behind the corner.

I smirked as I stood up and started making my way towards the dorms to go to bed.

The next day, a few minutes before the dance

"You're looking good." Mina said as I straightened my tie.

"Thanks." I straightened my suit jacket and stared at myself in the mirror. I wore a pitch black suit with a red tie and boutonnière.

"No one gets _this_ ready unless they have a date." Annie said. "So, who are you going with?"

"Weiss." I replied.

"That's great!" Mina said.

I walked to the door and opened it. "I'll see you guys there." I left the room and started heading for RWBY's dorm. I was about to knock when I remembered what I told Jaune the other day. Curious of what he did, I turned around and knocked on his team's door, which was right across from RWBY's.

A few seconds passed before he opened the door. "Oh, Liam!" he greeted. "What's up?"

"So, you ask her?"

"Huh?" he scratched his head.

I rubbed my forehead. "Did you ask Pyrrha to the dance?"

"Oh, yeah, I did."

"And?"

"She was more than happy. I think I made her week." he replied with a smile. "I've never seen her this happy before."

"I told you." I smirked.

He nodded. "I'll see you at the dance." he was about to close the door when I stopped it with my hand.

"I'm going with Weiss." I told him.

"Cool." he smirked. "That's great. Really."

"Alright." I nodded as I removed my hand from the door, allowing him to shut it.

I turned around and took a step towards RWBY's dorm room before knocking three times softly.

"He's here!" Ruby said excitedly.

"Shh!"

The door slowly opened to Weiss, standing with her hands folded in front of her. She was wearing a beautiful, pure white dress.

"Gorgeous." I said without thinking, getting a blush from her.

"Thanks." she smiled. "You look good, too."

"You ready to go?" I offered my arm and she slowly wrapped hers around mine.

"Yes." she nodded.

I led her to the ballroom and we walked through the doors, seeing Yang standing as the greeter.

"You guys look amazing!" Yang said. Weiss rolled her eyes as I smirked. "Come on in."

I nodded as we passed by her, heading for the dance floor.

A slow song was playing.

I placed my hands on Weiss' waist as she wrapped her arms around my neck, slowly swaying back and forth to the music.

"What made you ask me?" I asked.

"That...is a very difficult question to answer." she replied. "There is a lot about you."

"What stands out?" I smirked.

"Your looks, personality, eyes."

"My eyes?" I cocked my head a bit.

"They're unique." she replied. "One is red and the other is silver. How often do you meet someone with such a rare trait?"

I smiled. "Those can't be the only reasons."

She rolled her eyes playfully. "What do you like about me?" she asked, ignoring my question.

"What isn't there to like?" I answered. "You're beautiful, smart, quick, caring, skilled."

She blushed at my words. "Liam." her face darkened a bit. "Ruby told me what you said a few weeks ago."

"Okay?"

"I need to know something, because I really do like you, but...many guys come after me for the perks of my last name...and...I don't want-"

"Weiss." I said softly, cutting her off. "I don't care about money."

Her face lit up. "Really?"

"No." I shook my head. "I don't."

She smiled.

The song picked up a bit, causing a slight smirk to cross my face.

"What?" Weiss asked.

"Can you keep up?"

She smiled.

I took Weiss' left hand in my own and we started to pick up the pace a bit.

We danced to the music. I spun Weiss around before pulling her to me, swaying a bit before I dipped her and pulled her back to me.

She laughed a bit. "You're pretty good."

"I had some practice." I shrugged.

"I can tell." she spun around before wrapping her arms around my neck again.

"Liam." she looked up at me. "I..." she trailed off.

I slowly leaned forward, our faces inching closer and closer until our lips pressed together.

Her lips felt soft against my own. This moment felt like an eternity but only lasted a few seconds before we pulled away.

"That was..." she stopped, a slight blush on her face.

"Amazing." I finished for her.

She nodded as we started to sway back and forth to the song. Everything else seemed to fade away, leaving just us.

A few hours later

I walked Weiss back to her teams dorm. "I had a really good time, Liam."

I smiled. "Me too."

"We should get to bed for the missions we'll be going on tomorrow." she said as she took a step backwards into her room.

"It's still early." I replied. "We could...spend a bit more time together."

She smirked. "We could."

I took a step towards her and reached out to take her arm, gently pulling her towards me. She smiled as I wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her into a kiss. I felt her arms wrap around my neck, deepening the kiss.

She backed into her room, pulling me inside as well. Once inside, I kicked the door closed as she led us to her bed. We fell into it, with me on top.

She pulled me closer to her as she ran her tongue along my lip, asking for me to let her in. I parted my lips and our tongues quickly met, circling around each others instead of fighting for dominance.

"Am I interrupting something?" a voice asked, catching me and Weiss off guard.

"Yang?!" Weiss squealed. "What are you doing here?!"

"If I'm not mistaken, this is my room too." Yang replied, crossing her arms. "When did you two get together?"

"Since we kissed at the dance." Weiss answered.

"Should I leave?" Yang offered. "You seem eager to get back to your...activity."

"Yes!" Weiss scowled.

"Sucks." Yang said as she climbed into her bed. "I'm tired."

I glared at her. "Really?"

"Yep!"

I pushed myself off Weiss' bed, getting to my feet. "Where are you going?" she asked.

"Since someone decided to interrupt us, I figured I'd head back to my room." I replied, glaring at Yang. "I'll stop by tomorrow."

"Alright." Weiss sighed as she laid back in her bed.

I smiled as I walked out of the room, heading back to mine.

Halfway back, my scroll beeped. I pulled it out of my pocket to see a text from Yang.

 _'You have fun?'_

 _'Until it was interrupted.'_ I sent to her.

 _'Hey, the wait will make it that much better when you two finally, you know.'_

 _'I wasn't even thinking about that!'_ I replied. _'I like her company.'_

 _'Suuuuuuuure.'_

 _'You know what, next time I'm going to beat you in Goodwitch's class.'_ I texted.

 _'About time, I've been looking foward to it.'_

I put my scroll in my pocket as I walked into my dorm room.

Weiss' POV

"Yang!" I shouted as I threw a pillow at her, a blush crossing my face. She had shown me what she texted Liam.

"Oh my god, you want to!" Yang basically shouted.

"What?! No!" I yelled as I grabbed my pillow and buried my face into it to hide my blush.

"What's going on?" Ruby asked as she and Blake walked into the room.

"Yang, say one word and you're dead." I growled, glaring at her.

"One word." Yang replied with a smile.

"You know what I mean!"

End of chapter 15


	16. Chapter 16

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Mercury's POV, a few days ago

"You're sure?" Cinder asked. I had told her what I learned from my fight with Liam.

"Yes." I nodded.

"During the fight, I kept my eye on the crowd." Emerald said. "Nothing."

"And nothing bad happened to me during the fight, either." I added. "I doubt he and his father have the same semblance."

"Then why would he say he shares it with his father?" Cinder asked as she rubbed her chin in thought.

"Maybe to hide his true semblance?" Emerald suggested.

"Hm, maybe." Cinder glanced up. "What about Pyrrha? What have you learned about her?"

"Her semblance is polarity." Emerald replied.

"How do you know this?"

"I overheard the brat and the heiress talk about it a few days ago, saying how Pyrrha can use her semblance with skill and precision." Emerald answered.

"Hm. So everyone thinks she's destined for victory, when really she's taking fate into her own hands." Cinder smirked. "Add her to the list."

Liam's POV, present time

I sat up with a yawn. "Good, you're up." Annie said. "Change and meet us in the auditorium. We're going on a mission today."

"Right." I nodded and stood up.

A few minutes later

"What mission should we take?" I asked as I glanced over the suggestions. "Maybe...escort?"

"Too easy."

"Search and Destroy?" Mina asked.

"Can't. First years aren't allowed."

"Hmm." Rico stared at the screen.

"Actually." a new voice said. "Mr. Branwen will not be joining you three on your mission."

"Huh?" we all turned around to see Ozpin.

"A group of students are going on a more difficult mission and will need an extra hand." he replied. "If you ladies don't mind, may Mr. Branwen join the other team for this mission?"

"Sure, whatever." Annie replied with little care.

"Good. Mr. Branwen, please follow me." he turned around and headed towards the exit.

We left the building and started heading towards the landing pads. "Who am I helping?" I asked him.

"Team RWBY."

"Of course." I sighed. "Who else would it be?"

We approached the others. "Here is your temporary teammate." Ozpin said.

"Liam!" Ruby hugged my arm. "Hi."

I rolled my eyes as I ruffled her hair. "Can you let go now?"

She let go and backed away.

"So, what's the mission?" I asked.

"Search and Destroy." Yang answered.

"But...Annie said that those missions weren't allowed for first years." I said. "How did you 4 get it?"

"Ozpin let us take the mission." Blake said. "Now, can we get going?"

"Right." Ruby chuckled. "We're being accompanied by a huntsman."

"Who?"

"4 minutes ladies!" Oobleck shouted from the ship.

"You're joking."

A few minutes later

"We aren't going out to Mountain Glenn to just kill Grimm." I said. We were on a Bullhead for the abandoned city. "Why are we really going there?"

"Mountain Glenn was supposed to be an expansion of Vale." Blake said. "But it was overrun by Grimm and fenced off from the rest of the city."

"Yeah, and?"

"And now it stands abandoned, as a dark reminder." Oobleck said.

"And a likely place for a hideout." Blake added.

"The White Fang." I said softly.

"Correct."

The Bullhead lowered a bit and we all jumped out, pulling our weapons out.

"You still may be students, but as of this moment your first mission as huntsman and huntresses has begun." Oobleck said. "From this point forward you need to do exactly as I say. Do you understand?" he turned to face Ruby. "Ruby! I thought I told you to leave all your bags back at school." I then noticed Ruby had a backpack on.

"But, uh you hadn't told us to listen to you yet. So I didn't." Ruby replied.

"She's not wrong." Oobleck said to himself. "Very well Ruby leave your bag here we can pick it up upon our return."

"But I-waa"

"Young lady what in the world could you possibly have in that bag that could be so important for you to bring it-" Oobleck stopped as a dog poked its head out of Ruby's backpack.

"Get back in the bag." Ruby whispered.

"We're here to investigate an abandoned urban jungle teeming with death and hostility and you brought, a dog?" Oobleck said.

"I-uhh..!"

"Genius!" Oobleck snatched Zwei out of Ruby's bag. "Canines are historically known for their perceptive nose and heightened sense of sound. Making them excellent companions for hunts such as ours!"

"I'm a genius." Ruby stated.

"What do you want us to do, doctor?" I asked.

"Ah! Yes! Straight to the chase, I like it!" Oobleck dropped Zwei. "As you have been informed the Southeast area has been marked as a recent hotspot for Grimm activity. Now there are several possible explanations for this behavior. One of which being, Grimm."

"Uh, what?"

"Grimm, a creature of Grimm approximately 100 yards from us at this very moment." Oobleck said as he pointed behind us.

"What?!" we all turned around, weapons ready.

"Stop."

"Huh?"

"There are a number of reasons why Grimm would congregate in this particular area." Oobleck said. "The most likely of which would be their attraction to negativity. Sadness, envy, loneliness, hatred, all qualities that are likely held by our hidden group harboring ill intent."

"What now?" I asked.

"We wait, we track, if the specimen leads us to its pack, that pack may subsequently lead us to our pray." Oobleck replied.

"How long do we wait?" Yang asked.

"It's uncertain, hours, days, weeks, why lone Grimm have been known to stand isolated from the pack for months- and there's the whole pack."

Multiple Grimm had stalked out from behind the buildings.

"What?" Weiss said.

"And now they've seen us."

"What?!" Weiss repeated, louder.

"And now they've seen us!" Oobleck shouted.

"I take it tracking is out of the question?" Ruby asked.

"An accurate assumption, yes."

"What's the plan then?" Yang asked.

"Show me what you're capable of."

Team RWBY rushed in as I slowly unsheathed my katana, taking its scabbard off my back and holding it in my left hand. Taking a few steps forward, I was quickly surrounded by Beowolves.

The closest one to me snarled and growled before lunging forward. I dashed towards it as I swung my katana, kneeling a few feet behind it as I slowly sheathed my blade. Once the blade clicked into its sheath, the Beowolf slowly split in two, both halves falling to the ground and turning to dust.

I turned to the remaining Grimm with a smirk. They all growled and circled me. I heard a low growl behind me and used my thumb to pop the blade out of the sheath before spinning around and decapitating the Beowolf as it lunged.

The body fell passed me, turning to dust as the rest all charged at once.

I ducked under a swing, slicing its arm off before spinning around and cutting another Grimm in half. I stabbed a Grimm behind me, my back turned to it as a Grimm lunged forward.

I used the scabbard to knock it away before throwing my katana at it, seeing the blade sink into the beast's chest. I ran over and yanked the blade out of it, slowly sheathing the katana.

Once it clicked into place, Oobleck walked over to me. "May I ask you a question?"

"Sure." I pulled out my glock and finished off the last Grimm with a quick shot to its head.

"Why did you want to become a Huntsman?" he asked.

"What?" I turned to face him. "I guess I wanted to follow in my mother's footsteps."

"Your mother?" he repeated.

"My father told me about her and her skills as a huntress. I was inspired by those stories." I replied. "So, I want to do what she did, help people and bring the criminals to justice."

He hummed in satisfaction. "I see." he turned on his heel and walked away.

A few hours later

"I can't believe we didn't find anything." Yang said as we stood by a fire. Oobleck and Ruby were out securing the area.

"We've always been fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time." Blake said. "I guess we can't always have luck on our side."

Yang glared at me as I slowly rubbed the back of my head.

"That's not what I meant." Weiss said.

"Huh?"

"Earlier, about upholding the legacy." Weiss replied. "There's more to it than that."

"Yeah, no me too." Yang said. "I mean, I don't know."

"I don't know either." Blake added. "I know what I want to do but, I figured I'd always take things one step at a time."

"We know why we're here." Yang said. "Right?"

"Ah wonderful!" Oobleck said as he and Ruby walked in. "A textbook campfire."

"Fire!" Ruby knelt next to the fire, warming her hands.

"Very good, eat your dinners and hurry to bed." Oobleck said. "We have a lot of ground to cover tomorrow and we'll need you to take turns keeping watch over our temporary abode, any volunteers for first watch?"

"Yo." Ruby raised her hand.

I laid out my sleeping bag and laid down, slowly closing my eyes and letting myself fall to sleep.

A few hours later

"Zwei! Zwei!" I woke up to Ruby saying Zwei's name. I opened my eyes to see her grunt in frustration as the dog ran out of the building.

"I'll go get him." I said, getting to my feet.

"Thanks." Ruby yawned as she laid back down.

I left the ruined building and found Zwei across the street. "Zwei." I called him over. He barked before coming to me. "Come on, let's-"

"Hey, what was that?" a voice asked.

"What was what?" another said as two White Fang members walked into the open as me and Zwei ducked behind a building.

"Thought I heard a Beowolf."

"Come on, let's get back."

The two walked away and I started to follow them, making as little noise as possible. I unsheathed my katana in case I was spotted. They turned a corner and walked inside a building.

"Got 'em." I turned around and started to run back but stopped as the ground below me caved in. "What the he-" The ground gave way, causing me to drop my katana in order to grab the edge. Zwei fell passed me and I barely managed to grab him and throw him back onto the street above me. "Go!" I lost my grip and fell, landing on something hard a few moments later.

I slowly sat up with a groan. "Damn." I got to my feet and looked around, seeing dozens of buildings. "An underground city?"

"Hey!" the door behind me burst open. "Stop right there!"

I slowly turned around to see four White Fang members walking towards me. I reached behind me for my katana but gripped air. "Shit."

"Don't move!" one of them growled.

I put my hands in my pockets and pulled out my brass knuckles, putting my fists up in my fighting stance.

"Knock him out and let's go."

The first Fang member tried to grab my arm but I quickly punched him in his jaw, following with a right jab to his chest. He stumbled back as the other three ran at me.

End of chapter 16


	17. Chapter 17

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV

I was being dragged by the Fang members. "Roman, we have something."

"Ugh! Is it good news or bad news?" Roman growled.

"It's a...kid?"

Roman popped his head out of the train car. "That would be bad."

I struggled out of the Fang member's grasp, standing up straight with my hands tied behind my back with rope.

"You know this kid?" the Fang member asked as Roman approached me.

"A bit." he pulled his fist back and punched me, knocking me over. I fell onto my side as Roman knelt down and gripped the collar of my shirt, hitting me again and again.

"You might want to ease up."

"What are you doing here?" Roman growled at me.

"Piss off!" I spat.

He smirked as he punched me again. "Wrong answer!" he took a step back as he glanced at the Fang members that brought me to him. "How did you manage to take him down?"

"We had to call in the lieutenant." the Fang member replied. I chuckled a bit.

"Shut up!"

Roman brought his cane back and hit me, making a little blood to trickle down my lip.

"Your aura broke." Roman smirked.

"So what?" I growled, glaring at him.

"Hey, Finn, you got your pocket knife, right?" Roman asked.

"Yeah." he handed Roman the knife. "What are you planning?"

Roman slowly twirled the knife in his hands. "Hold his hand down."

Two of them cut the rope binding my hands and grabbed my left arm, forcing my fingers to spread across the floor of the train car. Roman smirked as he tapped each one of my fingers with the tip of the blade.

"Which one?" he said to himself. "So many options."

"Fuck you!" I growled, struggling against the two Fang members.

"Oh! Maybe the ring finger!" he pressed the blade down and I could feel the jagged teeth of the blade. "Hold still." he told me with a smirk. "This could get messy."

He was about to saw the blade back and forth when a loud explosion went off. "What is going on here?!" he shouted. A dozen Fang members started running from the source of the explosion.

I took the chance to elbow one of them in the face, taking my glock off his belt before running towards the source of the explosion, seeing RWBY heading my way.

"Are you okay?" Weiss asked as I finally got to them.

"Yeah, yeah!" I nodded. "That train is filled with androids, mechs, high tech gear!" I told them as Blake handed me my katana. "I don't know what they're planning but we gotta stop them." we heard the train start up.

"What are we waiting for?" Yang asked before dashing towards it. The rest of us quickly followed and jumped onto the train car.

We ran down the train car, stopping by a hatch in the roof. I opened it and was about to jump inside when I saw something.

"Doctor." I called Oobleck over. "What is this?"

He knelt down. "That...appears to be a bomb."

"We got baddies!" Ruby pointed to countless White Fang members that were running at us.

"This'll be fun." I gripped my katana and unsheathed it, running at the group and slicing through a half dozen of them with one swing, knocking them off the train. Weiss quickly joined me, placing her hand on my back to hop over me, before lunging forward with her rapier.

She knocked quite a few of them off the train before stopping and turning to fight.

"You four, go below and stop those bombs!" Oobleck ordered.

"What about us?" Ruby asked.

"We're going to stop this train."

"I know. I already said that." Ruby replied.

Me, Weiss, Blake and Yang jumped into the train car below. It was empty.

"Here. This should help you." Weiss handed Blake a colored clip for her weapon.

Neo walked into the train car with a smirk.

"You guys go on ahead." Yang said. "This one's mine."

"I'm sticking around." I told Yang, holding my katana at the ready.

"Fine."

Weiss and Blake rushed her as Yang shot a rocket at Neo's feet, causing her to backflip away.

Yang walked up to the girl, towering over her. She went for a punch but was quickly countered by Neo's umbrella.

Yang went in to attack, swinging as fast as she could but Neo easily dodged each attack. She kicked Yang in her chest, knocking her over, before backflipping. She landed as Yang rolled out of the way, barely dodging Neo's knee.

I tried to attack but Neo gripped my arm, spun around, jumped up, wrapped her legs around me, and flipped me onto my back. It happened in a flash, causing me to get a bit dizzy.

I slowly sat up to see Neo flip away from Yang, sitting on a crate with her legs crossed.

Neo smirked as Yang walked towards her, throwing a punch. Neo easily deflected Yang's attack and stood up, flipping and spinning towards Yang, causing her to back away.

"What the fuck is with this chick?!" I groaned as I stood up.

Yang shot a rocket at Neo but she blocked it with her umbrella, spinning around as Yang attacked again. Neo went to kick Yang but she grabbed her leg and tried to throw her but Neo somehow flipped onto her feet like a cat.

She grabbed Yang's arm and flipped onto her back, spinning before throwing her into the ceiling and knocking her out.

She slowly pulled out the blade from her umbrella and approached Yang. A bit of anger rushed through me as I ran at Neo, lifting my katana into the air but as I brought it down, Neo slashed at me.

I backed away as I covered my right eye, blood trickling down my face. I slowly pulled my hand away and blinked a few times. Her attack must not have done permanent damage because I could still see clearly.

As I was recovering, Neo gripped my arm and kicked me in my head, dazing me. She threw me onto the ground and kicked my head.

Raven's POV

I created a portal to Yang and quickly went through it, slashing at her attacker and making her back away from Yang and Liam.

I sheathed my blade and slowly pulled it back out, switching the dust effect on my weapon as I did so.

The girl's face whitened as she jumped backwards, disappearing completely. I glanced at my daughter and nephew before creating another portal and walking through it.

Liam's POV

I blinked a few times. I saw a figure in front of me but as I blinked, they were gone.

"What the hell?" I asked myself softly.

"You saw it too?" Yang asked groggily as she came to.

"Yeah." we got to our feet. "What was that?"

"I'm...not sure." Yang shook her head.

"We should get back to the others."

"Yeah." Yang said as though she was a bit distracted.

She shook her head before following me into the next train car, seeing Weiss and Blake jump onto the roof of the train. We quickly followed and saw Ruby standing next to Weiss.

"What's the plan?" Blake asked.

I looked ahead of them to see us approaching a dead end at a fast pace. Ruby and Weiss shared a quick glance before Weiss stabbed her rapier into the top of the train, creating an ice barrier around us.

I felt the impact shake the earth as I was propelled out of the ice and onto the ground. I opened my eyes and quickly shielded them from the brightness of the sun.

"Everyone alright?" I asked as I got to my feet.

"Yeah." Weiss answered. "You?"

"Never better." I replied.

There were a few seconds of silence before an ear piercing alarm went off. The head of a King Tainitu popped out from the hole in the ground.

"Not done yet." I pulled my katana off my back and smirked.

End of chapter 17


	18. Chapter 18

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV

Countless Grimm climbed out of the hole and surrounded us.

I slowly pulled out my katana. The Grimm moved around us as the others readied themselves.

"Hmm." I smirked as I lunged forward at an Alpha Beowolf, cutting it in two before following up by decapitating another Beowolf. I spun around as 3 more Grimm lunged, cutting them all in half.

I turned around to see a half dozen Grimm slowly stalking towards me. I twirled my katana before holding it at the ready. The Grimm roared before charging me.

I jumped over a swing from a Beowolf and cut its head clean off before impaling another on my sword. Yanking it upwards, the Grimm split in half before turning to dust.

A loud growl made me turn around to see an Alpha Ursa standing inches from me.

"Liam!" I noticed a glyph form under the Grimm. I quickly jumped backwards as three large icicles shot out from the glyph, impaling the Ursa.

"I had it covered." I told Weiss as I stood up.

"I thought you could use the help." she replied with a smirk.

More Grimm swarmed us and were about to lunge when the engines of a Bullhead whirred above us. We all looked up to see teams CFVY and JNPR jump from the Bullheads, attacking the Grimm immediately.

We all engaged the Grimm. Me and Weiss had teamed up to keep each other safe.

"Left!" I called out. Weiss immediately turned as a Grimm lunged, shoving the tip of her rapier into the mouth of the Beowolf.

I blocked a swing from an Ursa and quickly cut its arm off, following the swing by decapitating it.

I turned around to see a dozen Beowolves charging at me and Weiss.

I readied myself as a Beowolf jumped at me, only to be shot in the head by Atlesian Knights. Countless Atlas robots dropped into the battle, taking out Grimm with ease.

It wasn't long before the final Grimm dropped dead. "Well, today has been fun."

"Tell me about it." Weiss said, out of breath.

"You guys okay?" Yang asked as she joined us.

"Yeah." I stretched. "Never better."

"Students." Goodwitch said as she walked over to us. "We can handle things from here. Head back to Beacon and get some rest."

"Will do." I turned around and started heading towards a Bullhead.

End of chapter 18

(Sorry for the short chapter)


	19. Chapter 19

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV, a few days later

Me and my team were walking around the festival grounds. "So, when is our match?" Mina asked.

"Soon." Annie replied.

"Hey, Liam!" Ruby yelled as she and her team ran over to us. "Did you see our fight?"

"Sure did." I nodded. "You guys were great!"

Ruby smiled. "When is your guys' match?"

 _"Would Team AMBR please report to the arena for the next battle?"_ Doctor Oobleck asked over the intercom.

"We should get going." Mina said as she started making her way to the arena.

"Kick some butt Liam!" Ruby shouted as I followed my team.

A few minutes later

We stood in the middle of the arena as the other team walked in. _"For our next fight, it's Team AMBR from Beacon against team KRWN (crown) from Shade."_

We all took our weapons out and readied ourselves. The arena randomized the stages. An ocean on our side with a crashed ship and a destroyed city on the enemy's side.

 _"Three...two...one, begin!"_

I ran at one of them and locked my katana with her rifle. We pushed against each others strength but I quickly tripped her and took the chance to strike. My blade was blocked by one of her teammates, who easily pushed me back as Annie rushed in, punching him with a left cross.

The sniper I had pinned, turned around and ran towards the ruined buildings. I tried to give chase but one of her teammates blocked my path.

He smirked before running towards me. As he got closer, Rico hit him in the side of the head with her bostaff. He stumbled back, giving Rico the opportunity to follow up her attack.

She hit the back of his knee then hit chest before uppercutting him with the bottom of her staff, depleting his aura.

 _"And with that, it is a three on four!"_ Port announced.

Rico smirked at me before turning to help Mina and Annie. I made my way over to the sniper, jumping over debris and broken pipes. I ran up to the building she was on and started climbing up.

About halfway up, I heard a gunshot followed by Port making an announcement.

 _"Mina Carolina is out!"_

I climbed the rest of the way up and was immediately met with the butt of a rifle, nearly knocking me off the building. I kept my balance and blocked her fist, countering her attack by kicking her stomach. She stumbled back and I used the chance to ready to katana.

She aimed her rifle at me and pulled the trigger. I smirked as I pressed the button on the hilt of my katana, splitting the bullet in two and following the swing with a strike across the sniper's chest.

She fell to one knee as her aura went below 15 percent, eliminating her from the battle.

 _"Two dow-"_ Port stopped as two more buzzers went off. _"Team AMBR wins!"_

I jumped off the building with a flip, hitting the ground and rolling to my feet in front of Annie.

"What was that?" she asked as I brushed a bit of dust off my shirt.

"Me jumping off a building." I replied. "The landing was a bit sloppy.

She crossed her arms. _"Would both teams please leave the arena?"_

Me and my team walked out and towards the festival grounds to rest a bit.

"That was certainly quick." a voice said followed by footsteps approaching us.

"Hey, Weiss!" I waved. "What's up?"

"Just came by to ask: who are you sending into the doubles round?"

"We haven't-"

"Me and Liam." Annie interrupted Mina. "Then Liam for the singles."

"Oh!"

"What about you?" I asked Ruby.

"We put it on a vote." she replied. "Weiss and Yang for the doubles and Yang for the singles."

"Cool."

"Hope I can beat you in the singles." Yang said as she placed her hand on my shoulder.

"Where did you come from?!" I asked her.

"From the food stand back there." she pointed behind her.

"Hm." I smirked. "If we do fight in the singles, don't hold back."

"Wouldn't dream of it."

Yang walked away and I turned back to face Ruby. "So, are going to watch the next fights?"

"I was planning on going to the gym." I replied. "Maybe do some cardio or somethin'."

"Oh."

"Yeah." I waved. "I'll see you guys later." I turned around and put my hands in my jacket pockets.

A few minutes later

I threw a punch at the punching bad, hearing the chain rattle a bit. I was trying a few hand-to-hand combat moves that Annie taught me a few days ago.

"Wouldn't it be easier to try that on someone?" a voice asked.

I glanced behind me to see Annie walk in. "I didn't know if you'd want to spar."

She smirked as she held up her fists. "Come on."

I took a few steps towards her as I readied myself. She lunged forward with three quick punches which I blocked with ease. I countered with a straight jab but she gripped my wrist and punched my jaw. Stumbling back, Annie tried to push her attacks but I ducked and tripped her.

She chuckled as she held her hand out to me. "You're really getting better."

"Thanks." I helped her to her feet.

"We should head back. It's getting late."

I nodded in agreement and we made our way back to our dorm room to get some sleep for tomorrow's battle.

End of chapter 19


	20. Chapter 20

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

(Two chapters that were short...that was not planned. I apologize for the previous two chapters but hopefully the next few will be much, much longer. I try to be descriptive but being so close to an episode I have planned for is quickly approaching causing me to get really excited. I have made a few outcomes for the last few episodes of season 3 but there is one that I am really leaning towards. Can't wait to see your guys' reviews for it and hopefully it will be as good as it is in my thoughts. Anyways, onto the read)

Liam's POV, courtyard

I was heading for the arena when a loud noise made me stop and turn to face it. I saw a huge crowd around...something. Curious, I walked over and pushed my way through the crowd.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"Some crazy guy just started attacking my sister!" I glanced to my left to see Weiss standing next to me.

"What?!" I looked at the fight and noticed...my dad. "Are you fucking serious?!" I rubbed my forehead in frustration.

"What?!" Weiss asked.

"That...would be my dad."

"What?!" Weiss stared at me, wide-eyed.

"Kick her butt uncle Qrow!" Ruby yelled from somewhere in the crowd.

"Weiss." I slowly glanced up to face her. "Fuck."

I walked into the middle of the fight and stood there with my arms crossed. Qrow and Winter locked weapons, giving me the chance to walk between them and push my father back.

"Could you not destroy my school?!" I growled at him. "You do realize-" I smelled something strong on his breath. "You're joking?"

"What?!" he put his weapon on his back.

"You're kind of fucking up the courtyard, dad!" I growled. I turned to face Winter. "I'm sorry for my...him." I pointed behind me at my father.

Winter sheathed her rapier with a grunt. "You are his son?"

"Yeah." I rubbed the back of my head.

My father grunted. "We were busy."

"You were destroying the courtyard!" I turned to yell at him. "Continue your fight somewhere else!"

"Hmph." he pulled out his flask and took a sip.

"What is going on here?!" someone yelled. Ironwood pushed his way through the crowd.

"Qrow started the altercation." Winter said.

"That's not true." my dad corrected. "She attacked first."

"Is that so?"

I walked towards Weiss and said a quick apology for my father's actions.

"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby yelled. I glanced back to see her hug his arm. "Hi. Did you miss me?! Did you miss me?!"

"Nope." he lowered his arm and Ruby fell to the ground.

"You're seriously related to him?" Weiss asked me. "You don't seem like it."

"I try to distant myself when he's drunk." I replied. "Oh, don't forget to tell Winter about me."

"Of cour- wait what?!"

"Wouldn't Winter want to know about the guy her sister is dating?" I smirked.

"Uh..."

I waved as I walked away.

 _"The next match will start in 5 minutes!"_ Port announced.

That's mine and Annie's fight next. I continued my way to the arena and walked inside just as Annie got here.

"This'll be easy." she smirked.

We walked into the middle of the arena and waited for our opponents. Two guys walked onto the arena and readied themselves.

 _"Three...two...one, begin!"_

I rushed towards the guy directly in front of me and swung with my katana, pressing the button on the hilt and slicing the blade across his chest.

He stumbled back as Annie kept the second guy distracted.

I continued my attacks, causing him to lose his balance and fall backwards. I smirked as I raised my katana and finished his aura with a quick slash.

 _"Team AMBR moves on to the singles round!"_ Oobleck announced.

I smirked as me and Annie made our way out of the arena.

End of chapter 20


	21. Chapter 21

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV, one day later

Me, Yang and the other students that made it to the singles round, stood in the center of the arena, waiting for our match-ups.

 _"The first match is...Mercury Black and...Yang Xiao Long!"_ Port announced. _"Would all other combatants please leave the stage?"_

Me and the others walked off the arena, heading to our seats. I sat next to Weiss, leaning forward to get a better view of the fight.

Yang and Mercury attacked at the same time, countering each others attacks and backing away. Mercury went for an attack but Yang jumped over him, shooting her gauntlet as he turned around.

They blocked and dodged each others blows before knocking each other back. Yang took the opportunity to shoot a few rockets at Mercury who dodged the shots with ease he got closer to Yang.

He jumped at Yang with an overhead kick. Yang blocked his kick and pushed him back. Mercury managed to kick Yang into the air but she backflipped and landed on her feet, rushing him and throwing a few more punches.

Yang elbowed Mercury back, knocking him on his stomach, and shot more rockets at him, forcing him to backflip away to dodge them. He got too close to the edge and Yang shot another rocket, knocking him off the side. The match would have been over but Mercury used his boots to blast himself back onto the arena, continuing his fight with Yang.

He kicked her back and shot a white orb at her, which she dodged by rolling out of the way.

He started spinning on one foot as he shot more white orbs around him, creating a storm of them.

Yang tried to attack but Mercury countered by kicking her into the air, jumping up, and kicking her back into the ground, making all of the white orbs crash into her.

He started to walk away, thinking he won, but Yang activated her semblance, blasting the white mist away and rushing Mercury as he was off guard. She blocked his kicks and counter with a left hook, right hook combo, ending with a punch to his gut before punching him into the ground, depleting his aura completely.

"Hell yeah!" I cheered. "Good job Yang!"

Me and the rest of team RWBY cheered as Yang walked passed Mercury, only to turn around and shoot him in his knee.

The arena filled with the echo of her gauntlet shooting and the sound of something snap.

The whole arena filled with boos and gasps as Yang glared at Mercury.

"My leg! My LEG!" Mercury screamed in pain.

"That's what you get you little-"

"Yang Xiao Long! Stand down!" Atleasian knights surrounded her, pointing their guns at her.

"What? Why?!" Yang asked.

"Mercury!" Emerald joined Mercury, kneeling by him.

"Why did she do that?!" Mercury yelled. "Why'd she attack me?!"

Yang glanced at the replay screen.

"Why would she do that?" Weiss whispered.

"Something isn't right." I told the others.

A few medics carried Mercury off, leaving Yang surrounded by guards.

"You don't understand, he attacked me!" Yang told them.

"This isn't right." I told Ruby, Weiss and Blake again. "Before any of you jump to conclusions, let me talk to her."

I walked towards the stage entrance and waited for Yang.

She walked out, her hands behind her back with guns pointed at her.

"Out of the way!" one of the guards ordered.

"She's my cousin!" I growled. "I'm talking to her!" I pushed passed him. "Yang." I placed a hand on her shoulder but she jerked away. "You said he attacked you."

"He did!" she looked up at me, her eyes looked...worried. "I swear it!"

"I'm not saying he didn't." I told her. "Let's talk back in your dorm, in private."

She slowly nodded.

A few minutes later, RWBY's dorm

Yang sat down on the bed as I sat next to her, Ruby sat across from us. The others waited outside of the room so we could talk alone.

"Yang, can you tell us what happened?" I asked.

"He attacked me." she replied softly. "I acted in self defense."

"He attacked you?" Ruby repeated.

"Yes."

"So you attacked back." she slowly looked at me. I stared into her eyes, looking for any hint that she might be lying but there was none. She was serious. "I believe you."

"You do?"

"I can tell you're not lying. And you've never done something like this before." I said as I stood up and walked towards the door. "I have to go, my fight is going to start soon. I'll see you around, Yang."

"Thank you, Liam." she said as I left the room.

"How is she?" Weiss asked.

"She's telling the truth." I told her and Blake. "Talk to her and watch her eyes. You'll see everything she says is the truth."

"Okay." the two walked in and the door closed behind them.

 _"The next fight begins in five minutes."_ Port said. _"Liam Branwen against...Sun Wukong!"_

I made my way to the arena, slightly distracted by what's going on with Yang.

I entered the arena and stood in front of Sun, glancing at the ground.

"Hey, you alright?" Sun asked me.

"Y-yeah." I pulled my katana off my back and readied myself.

 _"Three...two...one, begin!"_

Sun twirled his staff as he ran at me, swinging it towards me and hitting my chest. He followed the attack with a quick uppercut using the bottom of his staff, causing me to fall onto my back.

I slowly got to my feet, holding my weapon but still distracted by what happened. Sun continued to attack, draining my aura rapidly as I barely lifted my katana to fight back.

He must not have noticed as he continued attacking.

My thoughts kept going back to what happened, sending waves of anger through me. It pissed me off.

Sun tried to attack again, only for me to catch his staff and spin around, kicking him back. He let go of his weapon and I threw it over the side of the arena.

 _"What will he do without his weapon?"_

I sheathed my katana and held up my fists. Even though I still have my katana, I do believe in fighting fairly.

Sun pressed his hands together, creating three copies of himself that all rushed me.

I jumped over the first one, kicking the second as I dodged two punches from the third. I ducked under a punch and made a dash for Sun. As I reached him, I threw a right cross and knocked Sun onto his back.

I went for a follow-up attacked but Sun kicked my legs out from under me. I landed on my back as Sun quickly got to his feet.

I stood up as Sun punched me, grabbing my katana from my back as I doubled over and finished off my aura with a slash across my chest.

 _"Sun Wukong wins!"_

I stumbled back as I lightly touched the spot Sun had hit, feeling a thick warm liquid damp my clothes. I pulled my hand back to see blood trickling down my palm.

"You alright?!" Sun asked, worried.

"Yeah." I stood up straight, wincing a bit. "It's not that deep." I held my hand out for my katana. He handed it back and I sheathed it. We both headed for the exit. Sun walked to the stands as I headed for the Bullheads to go back down to Beacon.

I boarded the ship and sat down on the bench in the corner. I lifted up my shirt to see the bleeding had already stopped.

"Hmph." I placed my shirt back down and waited until we arrived at Beacon.

It didn't take long to get back. I made my way to my dorm and walked inside, getting a glare from Annie.

"You lost."

"Yeah." I took off my jacket and shirt, throwing the bloody cloth to the ground as I opened my dresser. "Sorry."

"You should have won easily." she crossed her arms.

I pulled out a red t-shirt and black zip-up hoodie. "I was...distracted." I told her as I put on the clothes.

"By what?"

"What happened with my cousin." I replied.

"She went a little agro, so what?" Annie scoffed.

"She didn't go agro." I told her as I shut my dresser drawer and turned to face her. "Mercury attacked her so she acted in self defense."

"That's not what everyone else saw." Annie replied. "She broke that guy's leg and didn't think twice about it."

"Believe what you want." I growled at her.

"I will."

I walked to the door and left the room, slamming the door shut behind me.

End of chapter 21


	22. Chapter 22

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV

I knocked softly on Team RWBY's door. I heard soft footsteps approach the door before opening to Yang.

"Can I come in?" I asked.

She nodded as she opened the door wider, letting me walk in.

"I'm a bit tired." I told her. "You don't mind if I sleep in here, do you?"

"No." she shook her head. "How's your wound?"

"It stopped bleeding." I told her. I sat down on the floor, my back against the wall.

"Wait, why are you sleeping in here? Don't you have your own room?"

"My leader pissed me off." I replied.

"What'd she say?"

"It doesn't matter." I replied. "You feeling any better from...what happened?"

"A bit. Uncle Qrow stopped by earlier to check on me." she shrugged.

"That's good to hear." I smiled. "Can you wake me up in a few hours?"

"Sure thing."

I slumped my head as I closed my eyes.

Hours later

I woke up as an ear piercing alarm went off. "What the hell?!"

I glanced up to see Yang staring at her scroll.

"What's happeni-" I stopped as I saw Penny in pieces through the back of Yang's scroll. "Penny."

"Pyrrha...accidently..."

"What?!" I got to my feet.

A Bullhead whirred outside, causing me and Yang to look and see. The Bullhead landed and opened its side door, letting...Grimm into the school.

"What the hell!"

I heard a soft click and glanced behind me to see Yang ready her gauntlets. "We have to go."

"Yeah." I agreed as I unsheathed my katana.

We left the room. "I'm going to head for the courtyard." I told her.

"I'm going to find Blake, Weiss and Ruby."

"Got it!" I turned to leave. "Stay safe, Yang."

"You too."

I ran out of the dorms, immediately running into and killing a Beowolf.

"Hmph." I groaned as the wound on my chest started to ache a bit. My aura hadn't fully recovered yet so I'd have to be careful.

I ducked under a swing from an Ursa and quickly cut off its paw, following the swing by shoving my katana into its chest. Twisting the blade, I yanked it upwards, causing the large Grimm to split in half from the chest up.

As I ran through the courtyard, killing everything in my way, my scroll beeped. I pulled it out of my pocket and placed it to my ear as I answered the call.

"I'm a bit-" I decapitated a Beowolf. "Busy at the moment!"

"Liam! Thank god you're okay!" came Weiss' voice from the other side. "Where are you?!"

"I'm heading towards Beacon tower to try and find Ozpin or my dad!" I replied in a rush. "Can someone tell me what the hell is going on?!"

"White Fang are releasing Grimm into the school!" Blake's voice answered.

"The White Fang?!" I repeated. "Are you serious?!"

"Liam, me and Blake are heading for the courtyard to try and help out with the Grimm. Find Ozpin."

"Already on it!" I was about to hang up.

"Liam...in case I don't see you again...I-"

"Don't." I said, cutting her off. "You'll be able to tell me in person next time I see you."

"You better not die then." she growled at me.

I hung up and continued making my way to the tower.

A few minutes later

I ran inside just as Ozpin, Jaune and Pyrrha got into the elevator. The doors started to close as I dashed for them, barely making it inside as the doors shut.

"Liam?!"

"I was told to find you, Ozpin." I said, out of breath. "What the hell is going on?!"

"Since you're here, you can help." Ozpin said.

"With what?!"

He was silent as the elevator made its descent.

The doors opened and the three immediately started running towards the other side of the massive room.

"What is this place?" Jaune asked.

"It's...a type of vault." Pyrrha answered.

I looked ahead, seeing two pods, one open, the other occupied with a girl.

"What is this?" I asked.

"Pyrrha, get to the pods!" Ozpin ordered.

She did as told and got into the open pod as me and Jaune stayed on guard.

A few seconds passed and Pyrrha started screaming in pain.

"What the hell is going on?!" I shouted as I turned to see what was happening. "OZPIN!"

Glass shattering, followed by the sound of gasps of air, made me turn back around to see Cinder with a smirk. I glanced at the other pod to see the girl with an arrow sticking out of her chest.

"No wait!" I looked back to Cinder as Jaune tried to attack, only to be knocked back.

Pyrrha broke out of her pod and rushed to help Jaune, only to be held back by Ozpin. "Go! Find Glynda, Qrow, Ironwood, bring them here! The tower cannot fall!"

"We can help."

"You'll only get in the way."

Me, Jaune and Pyrrha ran towards the elevator and took it up, rushing out of the tower.

"I think I have Glynda's number." Jaune started looking through his scroll. "Where is it?"

"Can you tell us what the hell that was back there?" I asked Pyrrha.

"I-"

She was cut off as something flew towards the top of the tower from the elevator shaft.

"But...Ozpin..."

"There's no time." Pyrrha turned to Jaune. "Go! Find Glynda and the others!"

"What about you?" Pyrrha glanced to the tower. "No. Pyrrha you can't! You saw how powerful she is! Pyrrha I won't let-" Pyrrha kissed Jaune.

"I'm sorry." she pushed him into an open locker behind her, shutting the door and slowly walking towards it.

"Pyrrha, don't do this!" Jaune pleaded as Pyrrha pressed a few buttons, sending the locker towards the city.

"You realize we might not walk away, right?" I asked her.

"Yes."

"Are you sure you want to do this?" I asked.

"Yes." she turned around and started walking back towards the tower.

I followed her into the elevator as it started to glow black before rushing to the top. As soon as the doors opened, Pyrrha threw her shield at Cinder, engaging in a fight with her.

I had my katana at the ready as I rushed in, helping Pyrrha when I could.

They were so quick, fighting and countering at speeds I could barely keep up with.

The two clashed, falling to the ground. Pyrrha stood up, holding Cinder by her neck.

I took the chance to swing my katana at Cinder, only to stumble forward as something crashed into the top of the tower, knocking over to roof of it.

I got to my feet as Cinder and Pyrrha continued to fight. Pyrrha tripped Cinder with her shield before slamming a dozen large gears into her, burying the girl.

The gears started to glow with heat before blasting out in different directions. One hit me in my chest, slamming me into the wall as another crashed into my arm, crushing it and pinning me.

I let out a yell of pain as I felt the bones in my arm shatter! Gritting my teeth in an attempt to dull the pain, I tried to move, only to have a surge of pain rush through my entire body.

"It's a shame you were promised a power that was never truly yours." Cinder said to Pyrrha. "But take comfort in knowing that I will use it in ways you can possibly imagine."

Pyrrha shook Cinder's hand away from her face. "Do you believe in destiny?"

"Yes." Cinder created a bow and arrow out of glass, taking aim at Pyrrha's chest.

End of chapter 22

(Okay, I have thought of a half dozen different outcomes for this episode. One of which being: Liam follows Yang and pushes her out of the way of Adam's swing, ending up with Liam losing his arm instead of Yang. However I did not go this route seeing as how Yang losing her arm played a huge part in her character.

I can go a few ways with how I set this up. Some of which might be a bit unrealistic but it's a show about girls with big ass scythes and people with their own personal superpowers, we're beyond realistic.

So, I want to hear your guys' ideas. What should Liam do in the situation he is in? I will pick the one that either has the most support or seems the most likely he would do.

If no one replies within two days I will go with what I think would happen.

Thank you for reading and I hope you have enjoyed the story so far)


	23. Chapter 23

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

(Shoutout to Merendinoemiliano for a great outcome! I...may have forgotten about Liam's trait so I thank you for reminding me of it! As soon as I read his outcome, I immediately went for it. I'm sorry for anyone who wanted a different one but this outcome just killed it!)

Liam's POV

Cinder walked in front of Pyrrha, creating a bow and arrow out of glass and aiming it at her chest.

She pulled back the arrow and smirked.

"NOOO!" there was a quick flash of light, blinding me. I shielded my eyes as my head started to hurt.

Blinking, my vision slowly returned to normal, seeing Cinder glaring at me. "Silver eyes."

I looked back at my left arm and tried to get free of the gear that had me pinned, but each small movement that I made sent waves of pain through me.

Cinder walked over to me, ignoring the girl she had tried to kill mere seconds ago.

"It's a shame." she said slowly. "Silver eyed warriors are said to be the most fearsome. Yet here you are, trapped."

I stared into her eyes, hate surging through me. She created another bow and arrow but this time, she took aim at me.

Smirking, she shot the arrow.

Ruby's POV

I ran up the side of the tower, reaching the top and landing on my feet. I saw Pyrrha unconscious a few feet away, her chest rising and falling with each breath she took.

 _"I made it!"_ I thought to myself. My thoughts were quickly interrupted by the sound of pained gasps for air. I looked over to the source, seeing Liam with an arrow sticking out of his chest. "No." tears filled my eyes as I watched Cinder slowly walk towards him. "NOOOO!" there was a flash of light before everything went dark.

A few days later

I slowly opened my eyes, shielding them from the bright light. Sitting up, I noticed I was back in my room.

"Where-?"

"Ruby!" my dad rushed to my side. "You're awake!"

"What happened?"

"Your uncle Qrow found you," my dad said. "unconscious. He got you out of there though; he got you home safe."

"Wait! Yang! Is she alright?"

"Uh...she's uh...she's gonna be alright. I think she's just...I think it's just gonna take some time for her to get used to things. She's too strong to let this stop her." my dad hid his face as he tried to keep himself together. "I'm just glad to have my girls back at home."

"What happened to the school! And vale! Were they able to clear out the Grimm?" I asked.

"Things at Vale are under control. But the school? It's...it's not that simple. That thing, whatever it is, doesn't seem to be dead. Don't get me wrong, you did a number on it. But...it's not disappearing. It's...kind of...frozen. I know that doesn't sound too bad but it keeps attracting more Grimm to the school."

"I did what?"

"Hmm?"

"You said I did a number on it. What do you mean?" I asked him.

"I...look that's not important right now, we can talk about it later. Things are just...kind of a mess."

"It's always a mess." Qrow said as he walked in. "Mind if we have a minute?"

"What I can't stay here?"

"Tai. Please."

My dad stood up and kissed my forehead. "I'm glad you're alright." he turned around and walked out of the room.

Qrow walked over and sat down in the chair. "So...how you feeling?"

"Um...I kind of hurt...all over." I replied slowly.

"That makes sense, after what you did." he crossed his arms with a smirk.

"You guys keep saying that! That I did something. What are you talking about?"

"What's the last thing you remember?" he asked.

"I ran up the side of the tower. And when I got to the top, I- Liam! Is he...?" I looked to Qrow.

"He's fine." Qrow sat back. "If the arrow was a little more to the left, it would have hit his heart. Luckily, it missed all of his vital organs."

"I got to the top...and I saw Liam...and Cinder." I was fighting back tears from the memory of seeing my brother like that, injured and gasping for air. "Then everything went white."

"Anything else?"

"I remember...my head hurting."

"The night you met Ozpin, what was the first thing he said to you?" Qrow asked.

"I don't know...something about-"

"Silver eyes." my uncle said. "That is an extremely rare trait."

"So?"

"You're special, Ruby." Qrow continued. "And not in the 'daddy loves his special angel' kinda way. You're special the same way your mom was...the same way Liam is." I was silent, waiting for him to continue. "Remnant's full of legends and stories. Some of them true, some made up. But there's one Oz told me from a very long time ago. Back before huntsmen, before kingdoms. It was said that those born with silver eyes were destined to lead the life of a warrior. You see, creatures of Grimm - the most fearsome monsters mankind had ever encountered, were afraid of those silver-eyed warriors. They were the best of the best. It was said that even a single look from one of these fighters could strike a Grimm down. It's a ridiculous story."

"But...you think that I might be..."

"Well...a giant monster's currently frozen on top of Beacon tower. And you're here, safe in bed." he stood up and walked over to the window.

"Wait...wait, how did you know what Ozpin said to me?" I asked. "The night we met..."

"All those missions I go on, all the times I'm away in some far off place, it's been for Ozpin." Qrow said. "But he's missing now. Something's been set in motion...and with Oz gone, I'll have to pick up where he left off."

"What can I do?" I asked. "If I'm so special, then I can help! Right?"

"You really wanna help? Get some rest. You're in no condition to go anywhere right now." he walked to the door but stopped and turned to face me. "Besides, our enemy's trail leads all the way to Haven. That'd be quite a trip for a pipsqueak like you. Catch ya later, kiddo."

I looked at myself in the mirror across from my bed before getting to my feet. I left my room and walked towards Yang's, wanting to see how she was doing.

"Yang?" I asked as I slowly opened the door. Yang continued to stare out her window. I turned to leave.

"Ruby." I looked back to Yang as she stared at me, her eyes starting to water. I rushed over and hugged her.

"I'm so glad you're okay." I said.

"But I'm not." I pulled away, seeing Yang's right arm gone. "It's all gone. The school... Penny... Pyrrha. And..."

"Yang, where are Weiss and Blake?" I asked.

"Weiss' father...came for her." she replied.

"What? What do you mean?"

"No one outside of Vale knows what happened here." Yang said. "Before the tower fell...the last thing people saw was Atlas attacking innocent people and Grimm destroying the city. Everyone's scared. No one knows who to trust. So Weiss' father came to take her back to Atlas, where he thinks it's safe. She's gone."

"What about-"

"And Blake ran!" Yang growled. "Sun saw her go. After we got to the city...she just...ran!"

"But...why?"

"I don't know. And I don't care." Yang turned away.

"There has to be a reason she-"

"No, there doesn't! Sometimes bad things just happen, Ruby!"

"So what do we do now?" I asked.

"You can do whatever you want." Yang replied. "I'm gonna lie here."

"Yang..."

"Just leave me alone."

I looked to the floor as I slowly walked to the door, glancing back at Yang before I left. "I love you."

I closed the door as tears formed in my eyes. Footsteps came up the stairs and stopped. "I was just about to bring you something to eat." my dad said, carrying a tray of food. "I'm guessing you checked up on Yang?"

I slowly nodded. "I was just about to see Liam."

"Oh." my dad said, almost too soft to hear. "You might want to wait."

"Why?" I looked at him.

"Liam...is..." he sighed. "If you really want to see him, I won't stop you."

I got to my feet and walked to his room. I slowly opened the door wide enough for me to look inside.

Laim was sitting up, looking out the window. "Liam?"

He looked at me. "Ruby." he glanced down, and that's when I noticed his left arm was gone.

"What happened?!" I rushed over to him.

"They...couldn't save my arm." he said softly. "It...it..." tears formed in his eyes. I quickly wrapped my arms around him as he cried softly. He stopped after a few seconds and pulled away, wiping his tears. "Is everyone okay?"

"Pyrrha is fine." I told him, figuring that was who he meant.

"Weiss, Blake, Yang?" he asked.

"Blake...ran." I said softly. "Weiss is back in Atlas and...Yang...she...lost her arm."

"What?!"

I slowly nodded. "I'm not sure how but...her right arm is gone."

Liam slowly laid back, putting his head on the pillow. "I don't...feel so great."

"I'll leave you alone." I stood up and walked to the door.

End of chapter 23


	24. Chapter 24

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

(Reply to merendinoemiliano: Liam and Ruby aren't the same age. Liam is 17, Ruby is 15, they are not twins)

Liam's POV, months later

I sat in my room at my uncle's house. Ever since my dad had left, Tai offered me a place at his home until he came back.

I glanced down at my severed arm. Anger and depression surged through me as I remembered that day on top of the tower.

I pushed myself to my feet as I slowly walked to the door, leaving the room and heading downstairs. "Hi, Liam." my cousin greeted.

I nodded, acknowledging her as I made my way to the couch, sitting down beside her. I hadn't really talked much since my dad and sister left. Honestly, I felt a bit abandoned by everyone close to me. Weiss was gone, Ruby was heading to Mistral and my dad was just gone, without a word on where he was heading.

Yang glanced at me, sadness in her eyes. Me and her were in the same situation, both missing a limb and feeling abandoned.

She turned away and started flipping through channels on the TV, stopping on a newscast about Vale and Beacon.

She stopped for a few seconds on a newscast about who might have been behind the attack. Yang turned off the TV as my uncle walked in, carrying a few packages.

"I'm home!" he said.

"Hey dad." Yang said as she looked at him.

"Guess what came in today!" he said, excitedly.

"What?"

"I can't wait for you to try this." Tai walked into the kitchen to put down the packages, returning a few seconds later with a single package, placing it down in front of Yang. "Well?"

"It's...for me?" Yang asked.

"For you and you only." Tai replied. Yang opened the package, a shinning prosthetic arm lay in the package. "Brand new, state of the art Atlas tech. You know, I thought I was gonna have to pull some strings, call in a few favors. But you earned this one all on your own, kiddo."

"Huh?"

"Before I could even talk to him, General Ironwood already had one of his top scientists working on this...for you." Tai said. "He wanted me to tell you that you fought admirably. You should be proud of yourself. Well? You're gonna try it on?"

"I uh...what about Liam?"

"Ironwood...didn't say anything about Liam..." he turned to me. "I'm pretty sure he is making one for you as well."

"I'm not in the mood." Yang said. "Maybe later?"

I got to my feet and walked upstairs, tidying the rooms and making the beds. I got done and walked back downstairs, seeing Yang walk in with the mail before heading outside to sweep the porch. She came back inside a few minutes later and started doing the dishes.

"Here." I walked over and started to help.

She smiled as I rinsed the dishes and held them for her to wash with the sponge. "Thanks, Liam." she went to put away a glass but dropped it. It shattered as Yang yelled, backing into me. I placed my hand on her arm to steady her as she punched the counter. "I'm fine." she said as she walked out of the kitchen.

I watched her leave before shaking my head, leaving the kitchen and heading upstairs.

I walked into my room and laid down on the bed, closing my eyes to get some sleep. This was what I usually did now, wake up, help around the house, and go to sleep a bit early.

A few hours later

"Silver eyes. Silver eyed warriors are supposed to be the most fearsome." _Cinder's voice echoed._ _"It's a shame." she appeared in front of me, slowly approaching me with a sadistic smile. I tried to attack but felt my arms be pulled behind me, as if I was chained to a wall. She created a bow and arrow out of glass and took aim at my chest, letting the arrow go._

I opened my eyes with a slight gasp. "Damnit." I slowly sat up and glanced over at my katana that now lay on the dresser. I sighed as I got to my feet and picked it up, walking to the door and heading downstairs. I left through the back door and into the backyard.

I held my weapon in front of me, looking over every inch of it. Glancing down at my severed arm, I let out a sigh. "I can't let this stop me." I said to myself.

I swung my katana, hearing the wind split as the weapon slashed. This was the first time I swung the blade in months. Feeling the nostalgia of the times I had used the weapon, I swung it again. A smirk slowly spread across my lips as I swung the blade a third time.

I couldn't let what had happened stop me, I wouldn't let it stop me!

I swung the blade a fourth and final time before sheathing it on my back and heading inside. As I entered my room, I put the blade back on the dresser, laying back into the bed and falling asleep again.

End of chapter 24


	25. Chapter 25

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

(Reply to merendinoemiliano: in the first chapter I put 15 years ago, yes. However, in chapter 3 I put two years later after the visit with Tai, Yang and Ruby. So, Liam is 17 and Ruby is 15.

Author's note: So, I have decided to stretch out the storyline a bit because the things I have planned and the main RWBY storyline are parallel, making my plans a bit difficult to act on. So, in this timeline, imagine Yang got her arm at least one to two months before she did in the show. It'll make my plans a lot easier instead of having Liam just up and go somewhere with little to no recovery. Hope you all have been enjoying the story and thank you for reading)

Liam's POV

The sunlight shone in through the window, blinding me as I slowly sat up. I glanced around the room before getting out of bed and to my feet. Walking to the door, I opened it with a slight creak, shutting it behind me before heading downstairs.

The house seemed empty, which was strange because Yang never left and I didn't see her out on the porch. I walked to the backdoor and opened it, seeing Yang and Tai sparring.

Yang threw a punch, making Tai slide a few feet away. "Alright." he smiled. "Guess I'm gonna have to get used to that." he turned to me. "Liam, you're up!"

Yang turned around and smiled as our eyes met. "Liam!" she walked up to me and wrapped her arms around me in a tight embrace.

She pulled away after a few seconds and that's when I noticed she had her mechanical arm on. "It looks good on you." I said softly.

She held up her arm. "Thanks."

"Want to join?" Tai asked me.

"No." I shook my head and walked back inside, heading to my room. I sat down on the edge of my bed and looked towards the floor, thinking about what had happened at the fall of Beacon. Sighing, I fell backwards, covering my face with my arm.

I wanted to forget, I wanted everything to go back to the way it was but no matter what I did, my thoughts drifted back to the Fall.

I closed my eyes as I remembered everyone I had made friends with, everyone I had a slim chance of seeing again. Pyrrja, Jaune, Sun...

"Weiss." I whispered to myself. My head was immediately filled with memories of her.

 _"Weiss is back in Atlas."_ Ruby's voice echoed in my head.

"Atlas?" I remembered what Ruby said a few months ago. "Atlas..." I pushed myself to my feet and pulled out a backpack.

End of chapter 25

(Sorry for the shortness)


	26. Chapter 26

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV

I grabbed out some clothes and put them into the backpack. I was tired of this place, tired of the same nightmare every night, tired of the same sick feeling I got at the mention of Beacon. I needed some time away, some time to forget.

"Going somewhere?" Tai asked from the doorway, startling me.

"Ruby said Weiss is in Atlas." I told him. "So that's where I plan on going."

"You really think you're ready?" he asked me.

"I'm not sure." I replied honestly. "But, it's actually good you're here. It'd take me much longer to get to Atlas on foot. So, I wanted to ask-"

"If I could buy you an airship ticket?" he finished for me. "You should stay for a few more days."

"I can't." I shook my head slowly. "I want to see her again."

He sighed. "I understand."

"Thank you." I zipped up the backpack and swung it over my shoulder, placing the katana and its scabbard on my back as well. "Thanks for everything, uncle Tai."

He smiled.

A few minutes later

He drove me to the docks, along with Yang. Once she found out where I was heading, she understood why I wanted to go.

"Here's all the lien you'll need for the trip." Tai handed me a decently sized coin purse.

"Thank you." I placed it in my pocket. Yang approached me and quickly brought me into a hug.

"I'll miss you, you know."

"I won't be gone forever." I smirked. "Just a few months and I'll come back."

We separated from the embrace as I turned to board the airship. I smiled at the two of them as the doors doors. The airship took off moments later.

I closed my eyes as I pictured Weiss in my head. I wanted to see her again.

Hours later

The airship landed and opened the side door, allowing the passengers to leave. I stepped out of the ship, pulling the hood of my cloak over my head. I swung my backpack over my shoulder before heading into the town.

Weiss' POV

I had just gotten done with my performance and was standing by my father at the after party. My father was talking to a few of the guests, making me roll my eyes in boredom. Glancing around the room, my eyes landed on a painting of Beacon.

Taking a step towards the painting, I felt my father grip my arm, stopping me.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm...just a little thirsty." I replied.

"Sweetheart, we have people for that." he was about to call a waiter over but I quickly stopped him.

"What? No, I can get it." I insisted. "I'll be right back, I promise." I stared at him, silently pleading for him to let me go. He turned away, continuing his conversation with the others, giving me silent permission to leave.

I walked over to the painting and stood in front of it, behing the velvet rope. "It's beautiful." some guy said as he leaned against the pole. "You two match."

"Yes, it's a lovely painting." I said, disinterested.

"So...that was my attempt at breaking the ice...how am I doing so far?" he asked.

"You are leaving a lot to be desired." I told him.

"Well, I've always appreciated honesty. Henry." he held his hand out to me. "Marigold."

"Weiss Schnee." I shook his hand.

"I know. I saw your performance...obviously." I took my hand away from his. "You were wonderful! And I promise I'm not just saying that because you're pretty. Honesty, remember? So...you thinking about buying it?"

"No...I don't think so."

"Yeah...kind of pricey for a painting."

"It's to raise money." I growled at him.

"Oh really?" he asked. "For what?"

"For what!?" I repeated, a bit annoyed.

"I'll admit..." he said with a chuckle. "I only come to these things for the food and drinks. And the extraordinary company, of course." he took a glass of champagne from a passing waiter, taking a sip. "So what...is it another Mantle fundraiser or something?"

"Get out." I told him.

"What?"

"Get out, or I will have security escort you out." I growled.

"But I haven't done anyth-"

"Leave!"

"Whatever." he walked away.

I turned to the painting again, closing my eyes as I listened to the conversations around me.

"But really, does it come as any surprise what happened to Vale?" I heard someone in the crowd say. "It was a long time coming if you ask me."

Her husband placed his hand on her shoulder, in a poor attempt to get her to shut her trap. "Honey.."

"What?" she shook his hand off. "You said the same thing last night. If they're so arrogant to think they can get by without proper kingdom defense, then I say good riddance."

I had enough at this point. "Shut up!" I shouted at her, getting everyone's attention.

Liam's POV

I stared at the piece of paper Weiss' butler, Klein, gave me, telling me where I could find her. At first he was a bit suspicious of me just showing up and asking about her, but after I told him who I was and that Weiss told him plenty of stories about me, he took no time in writing down the address of where she was performing.

I stood outside of the building, taking a deep breath and walking inside.

"Welcome. Do you have an invitation?" the greeter asked. I handed her the envelope Klein had also given me. "Walk on in." she smiled.

I nodded as I followed her gesture. I was immediately met with a dozen confused looks. Everyone was wearing a suit or dress, which made me stand out as I wore a cloak, covering most of my body.

I ignored the confused stares I got as I walked through the room, keeping an eye out for Weiss.

I searched for a few minutes but couldn't find her at all. I was about to head for the exit, figuring Weiss was no longer here, when a loud shout made me stop dead in my tracks and turn to the source.

"Shut up!" she yelled. I tried to see who it was but couldn't tell from all of the people blocking me. "You don't have a clue! None of you do!"

"Excuse me?!" a woman said. I assumed those words were directed to her.

"You're all just standing around talking about nothing!" the girl continued as I tried to see who it was. "Worrying about your hair, your money, your stupid problems that don't mean anything!"

"Weiss, that's enough!"

I finally pushed through a few people, seeing the girl I came all this way to see. Her father had gripped her arm in an attempt to get her to stop. "Let go of me!"

"You're embarrassing the family!"

"I said let go!" she broke out of his grasp and fell to the ground, summoning a white Boarbatusk as she hit the ground. It glared at the woman Weiss was yelling at before rushing towards her.

"Please, I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Just leave me alone!" the woman screamed in fear.

I quickly pulled out my katana and jumped over the summoned Grimm, swinging my blade and slicing at its neck. I slowly sheathed the blade and once it clicked into place, the Boarbatusk's head slowly slid off of its shoulders before disappearing.

"Arrest her!" the woman shouted. I stood up and glanced at her. "What are you waiting for? She's insane, she should be locked up!"

"Do I look like the police to you?" I scoffed.

"She's the only one making sense around here." Ironwood said as he walked passed me, placing his hand on my shoulder for a split second. "Thanks for the party, Jacques."

I looked back at Weiss with a smile, receiving a look of happiness and disbelief from her. Her gaze suddenly shifted from me to her father, who glared back at her.

"Hm." I turned on my heel and headed for the exit. I wanted to run to Weiss but now was not a good time. It'll have to wait until she gets back home.

I walked out into the cold of Atlas, heading towards the city and finding a small Inn. Tired, I walked through the doors.

"Welcome!" the girl behind the counter said with a smile. "Room for one?"

"Yes." I nodded as I pulled out the coin purse Tai had given me. "One night."

"That'll be 50 lien."

I paid the amount and she handed me the room key.

Opening the door of my temporary room, I tossed my backpack on the bed and sat down on the edge, falling back with a sigh.

I slowly sat back up and took off my cloak, tossing it onto the chair beside the bed. I saw something slide out of my cloak and slide across the ground. Looking to see what it was, I picked it up.

A piece of paper?

I unfolded it. _"Meet me at the Atlas Academy tomorrow. -Ironwood"_ it read.

"Okay?" I placed the paper in my pocket before laying back down and closing my eyes to fall asleep.

End of chapter 26


	27. Chapter 27

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV, the next day

I stood outside of the headmaster's office at the academy. Confused about why Ironwood asked me to come here, I hesitantly knocked three times. "Come in." I did as told and saw Ironwood sitting behind a desk. "Ah, Liam! I'm glad you came!"

"What's this about?" I asked, confused.

"Qrow told me about your...incident." he glanced at my arm. "I wanted you to know that we are working on a prosethic for you."

I was a bit surprised. "Uh...thanks." I rubbed the back of my head.

"It's almost finished, if you want to take a look." he offered.

"Thanks but...I think I'll wait for when it's done."

"Very well." he nodded.

I turned around and reached for the door. "I'll...see you later."

"Right."

I left the office and out of the academy. Glancing at Weiss' home, I started making my way there, eager to talk to her.

It didn't take me long to reach the front door and knock. The door was opened by Weiss' father, who did not look happy at all.

"Can I help you?" he growled.

Something about this guy made me wonder if I should say why I truly came here. Trusting my instincts, I decided to lie about why I came here.

"Mr. Schnee, right?" I asked. "I wanted to thank you for the party last night."

He nodded, his face stern. "You're welcome." he went to shut the door but before he did, I saw Klein point upwards and to the right. The door shut and I realized what Klein was telling me, Weiss' room was upstairs and to the right.

"Hm." I glanced down at my left arm, hoping my injury wouldn't prevent me from doing what I was about to do. I took a few steps away from the house before taking a running jump and turning into a crow.

Thankfully, in my bird form, I had all of my parts. I flew to the back of the house and to the second floor, glancing inside of the window to see Weiss rearrange her bed and other things.

I pecked the glass, getting her attention. She turned around and squinted her eyes at me, confused.

I pecked again and she slowly walked towards the window, opening it. I flew in and changed back, stretching and popping my neck.

"Liam!?" she whisper shouted. "How did you do that? How are you here?! When did you-" I cut her off as I wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her to me, pressing my lips against hers.

Tears formed in my eyes as I felt her soft lips against mine. She melted into the sudden embrace, wrapping her arms around my neck to deepen the kiss.

"I missed you so much." Weiss cried as she pulled away.

"I missed you, too." I told her with a soft smile. I noticed her left cheek was a bit red. "What happened?"

"Huh?" I gently touched her cheek and her eyes darkened a bit. "Oh. That... It doesn't matter." she looked up to me with a smile. "How did you get here?"

"My uncle gave me some lien for the trip." I answered. "The first thing I did when I got here was look for your house. I knocked on the door and Klein opened it, cool guy by the way, and after telling him who I was, he wrote down the address of where your performance was."

She smiled as she kissed me again. "Wait." she pulled away. "How were you a bird?"

"I thought you knew." I shrugged. "Part of my semblance allows me to turn into a crow."

"That...must be a very rare semblance." she said softly.

"How have you been?" I asked, changing the subject.

"I...could be better." she answered. "But now that you're here, I'm already feeling much better."

"Glad I could help." I smiled. Hearing footsteps grow closer to the room, Weiss turned to me, he eyes wide. "You have to lea-"

I turned into a crow and flew towards the corner of the room, perching on the wall as Klein walked in.

He scanned the room before turning to Weiss. "Is he here?" he asked her.

She glanced up at me and he followed her gaze, seeing me perched on the wall. I flew down and changed back.

I stretched again. Each time I changed back from my bird form, I felt a bit weird. Guess having one arm when changing between my two forms comes with a bit of discomfort.

"Thanks Klein." I smiled at the man.

"Don't tell father he's here." Weiss whispered.

He nodded as he left the room, closing the door behind him.

"So, where are you staying?" Weiss asked me.

"In some random Inn in town." I replied. "Why?"

"Sit." she gestured to her bed. I was about to remove my cloak when I stopped, realizing Weiss didn't know about what had happened. Weiss must have noticed my sudden shock of realization. "What's wrong?"

I sighed before slowly letting the cloak fall to the ground. Weiss gasped and quickly covered her mouth. "What happened?!"

With a sigh, I started to tell her what happened back on that day. "I was on top of the tower, the night of the Fall." I told her. "Cinder and Pyrrha were fighting and I tried to help when I could." I took a deep breath as I remembered everything. "Pyrrha crushed Cinder with a bunch of metal gears, and for a second, I thought the fight was over...but it wasn't. I let my guard down just as Cinder broke free, sending the gears everywhere. I was knocked away by the blast and as I recovered, a large gear pinned my arm to what remained of the wall. I could...feel...every bone break." I wanted to stop as my eyes teared up from the memories alone. "Cinder walked in front of Pyrrha and...tried to..."

"You can stop if you want." Weiss said softly.

I slowly shook my head. "Something happened to me that night."

"What?"

"A...flash of light..." I looked Weiss in the eye. "Cinder said something about my silver eye...then she tried to..." I pulled the collar of my shirt down to show Weiss the small scar on my chest.

Her eyes widened before she pulled me into a hug. "I'm so sorry!"

"It wasn't your fault." I said as I returned the comforting embrace.

As she pulled away, she looked at me with a stern expression. "How...how are Ruby and Yang?"

"Ruby? I...don't know how she's doing." I answered honestly. "She left Patch to head for Mistral a few months ago."

"...Yang?"

"Before I left, she started doing much, much better." I smiled. "Yang's tough. She just needed time to...adjust before getting back into things."

Weiss smiled. "That's good to hear!"

I glanced out the window to see that it was already night. "I should probably go, let you get some rest." She smiled as I grabbed my cloak and headed for the window. "I'll be back tomorrow."

"You better." she gripped my shirt and pulled me towards her for one last kiss before allowing me to leave.

"I love you." we said in unison.

I jumped back and turned into my bird form, heading back towards the Inn for another night.

End of chapter 27


	28. Chapter 28

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV, the next day

I pecked on Weiss' window to get her attention. She smiled as she let me inside her room.

Changing back to normal, I landed next to her, stretching. "Hey." I yawned.

She gave me a quick hug. "I was wondering when you'd come back."

I smiled as I glanced around her room. "So, what are you up to?"

"Practicing." she replied.

"Practicing what?" I asked, curious.

"My summoning." she shrugged. "I'm getting better. Want to see?"

"Sure."

She nodded as she walked to the small opening in the room, spinning and placing the tip of her sword on the ground as a glyph formed. I watched as the handle of what looked like a sword, came out of the glyph.

I heard the doorknob start to turn and quickly changed into my bird form, flying back into the corner and perching on the wall, waiting to see who it was.

"Hello, sister." the kid said.

Weiss' head shot around the room, her eyes landing on me for a split second before letting out a silent sigh of relief. "Leave."

"How hurtful." the kid said. "And here I am, about to offer you a favor. Father's taking me to town to introduce me to some of his business partners. I'd thought I'd see if you wanted me to pick up anything, since you're...well, stuck here."

"Are you jealous? Is that it?" Weiss asked him.

"Whatever do you mean?"

"Is that why you hate me?" Weiss continued. "Are you jealous of my abilities? Of Winter's?"

"Hmmm...no, not really." he replied. "Honestly, I find it barbaric. It's beneath people like me. Like father. What could a single huntsman possibly do that an army could not? That's why we have one, even if it is run by a fool."

"I said, leave." Weiss said.

"Fine, fine." he started to back out of the room. "I've got better things to do. Enjoy your...training, however pointless it is." he stopped in the doorway and turned back to Weiss. "What is your plan, anyway? What do you hope to accomplish while trapped in your own bedroom?"

Weiss created a glyph on the door and slammed it shut.

I waited a few seconds before flying down and changing back, standing in front of Weiss. "He was...annoying."

Weiss seemed to ignore me as she went back to trying to summon the knight. From the picture on the wall, that's what I assumed she was trying to summon.

She created another glyph and started to focus, placing the tip of her rapier on the ground.

Wind started suddenly blowing around the room as the bookshelves started to shake and knock the books down. Weiss continued to focus until the knight finally came out of the glyph, creating a slight shockwave, causing the window to break.

I shielded my eyes as the door to the room burst open.

"Miss Schnee! Are you alright?!" Klein asked, seeing the knight.

Weiss smirked as she looked at her summon. "Yes." she glanced outside of her broken window. "Klein, I need a favor."

"Well, at least I have an easier way to get inside now." I joked.

A few hours later

"Is it ready?" I asked Ironwood as I stepped into his office.

"Yes." he smiled as he showed it to me. "It's the best tech we had."

I picked it up and looked it over. "I'm assuming I don't just put it on and it magically works."

"Here." he handed me something I couldn't exactly identify. "Place this on your...injury...then attach the arm to it."

"Alright..." I did as told and put it on, followed by the mechanical arm. I lifted my left arm and bent it a few times. "Feels...surprisingly normal." I clenched and un-clenched my hand a few times. "Thank you, General."

He smiled as I left the academy. I made my way to the entrance of the city to meet with Weiss.

"Liam?" a soft voice called out from the dark.

"Right here." I said softly, getting her attention. "I...had to get something real quick."

"What?"

I held up my left arm and her eyes slowly widened. "How did you-"

"General Ironwood gave it to me." I said. "We should get going."

"Follow me."

She took me to an airship that was transporting dust. "You're not allowed back here."

"We need a ride to Mistral."

"I don't transport-" he stopped as Weiss tossed him a coin purse. He pulled out the lien and started to count it. "Okay, you can hide out back in the cargo hold. I'll take you as far as I can, but if we get caught, you're on your own. Understand?"

Me and Weiss boarded the ship. "This...is going to be a long trip."

End of chapter 28


	29. Chapter 29

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

(Reply to merendinoemiliano: pretty much my exact thought process when I realized it too. Oh well, it's magic)

Liam's POV, hours later

"So, how much farther?" Weiss asked the pilot.

"We're in the home stretch now." the pilot answered. "No more stops from here to Mistral. Sorry for the long trip. Keeping us off the radar's been harder than I thought. Lots of air traffic around northern Anima."

"It's fine. I...just hope we haven't been a burden." Weiss said.

The pilot chuckled. "You and your money are more than welcome on this ship." Static started to come from the radio, getting the pilot's attention. "What the...?"

"Is...everything okay?" Weiss asked as the pilot tried to tune the radio.

"I don't know." the pilot replied. "We're still over Lake Matsu. Shouldn't be picking up broadcast this far from Mistral. Someone must be close."

 _"Mayday, mayday! We are a small passenger flight, and our huntress is down! We aren't equipped to deal with this!"_ a woman's voice said through the radio.

"Oh, man."

 _"The Grimm hit us 400 klicks north of the southern shoreline!"_ it sounded as if an explosion went off. _"Get them off us! If anyone can hear this-"_ there was another explosion before transmission was cut.

"We're going to help them, right?" Weiss asked.

"What? NO! I'm trying to avoid them."

"But...they'll die..?"

"Look, if we picked up their transmission, I'm sure someone else did, too." the pilot said. "Besides, this is a cargo ship. She's not much good in a fight. I just want to finish this job and go home. Sorry, guys. My ship, my rules."

"Fuck that! I'm not risking their lives on chance alone." I growled as I made my way to the back of the ship. "Open the hatch!"

"What are you gonna do?" the pilot asked. "We're over the lake!"

"Open it!" I yelled. "I'll be back soon."

"Alright..."

The hatch opened and I immediately jumped out, turning into my crow form and heading towards the ship's location.

I saw the ship being attacked by Lancers. Flapping my wings to go faster, I switched back and landed on the top of the ship, pulling out my katana. I dug my fingers into the top of the ship to hold on as I drew out my sword with my right hand.

I started to cut the Lancers' grapples, causing them to screech in pain as I freed the ship.

I cut the final grapple from the ship and made my way to the front of the ship, tapping on the glass three times to get the pilot's attention. Her face looked shocked as our eyes met. I pointed to the right, towards land, and she immediately changed course, heading where I pointed.

Readying myself for more Lancers, I kept an eye out for the ship Weiss is on.

Hearing the sound of countless wings flapping, I turned around to see countless Lancers coming straight for us.

"Damnit!" I switched my stance, holding my katana backwards as I waited for any attacks.

The Lancers got closer and started launching more grapples. I did my best to deflect or cut them off.

"Damnit!" I looked around and noticed a hatch on the top of the ship. Ripping it open, I jumped inside, startling most of the passengers. "The huntress, where is she?" I shouted.

A few of the passengers pointed towards the cockpit. I made my way there and opened the door.

"You're that-"

"What weapon did the huntress have?!"

"O-over there!" she pointed to the corner where the huntress lay, motionless. I quickly picked up her weapon and made my way back to the hatch, jumping back on top of the ship.

"Hope this thing can shoot." the weapon was some sort of staff with a button on the side of it. I pressed it and it changed into an assault rifle-looking gun. Pulling the trigger, it shot a lightning dust bullet. "Hmm." I aimed down the sight and pulled the trigger again, hitting a Lancer this time. The lightning shot reached out to the other Lancers, causing them to die as well. _"A chain shot?"_

I shot a few more times, killing multiple Lancers at a time. After a few more shots, the last Lancer fell to the ground, dead.

I let out a sigh of relief as I jumped back into the ship, walking into the cockpit. "If you head that way, you'll reach Mistral." I told the pilot as I placed the huntress' weapon next to her. "You can refuel and get some more help. Try to stay in clear skies."

"How did you get here?" she asked.

"I flew." I smirked. "Try to avoid any more of these floating islands."

"Got it. And...thank you."

I walked back to the hatch and jumped out again, changing into my crow form and looking for the ship I was in before.

I flew high to get a better view and saw a Queen Lancer following another airship. _"Damnit!"_

I flew towards it, flapping my wings as fast as I could to catch up to the ship. Once close enough, I switched back and landed on the roof, digging my fingers into the top to keep me from falling off.

I glanced back at the Queen Lancer and saw a few glyphs by her. "Weiss." I made my way to the back of the ship and looked inside, seeing Weiss concentrate as she tried to summon the knight.

I swung myself inside, landing next to her.

"Pull up, now!" she yelled.

"What?" the ship flipped onto its back, causing me to fall towards the ceiling of the ship. I landed on my back as the knight jumped out of the ship. We flipped back over, causing me hit the floor of the ship. "Damnit!"

The ship suddenly lurched to the side as an alarm went off. "That can't be good."

The ship seemed to slow before suddenly crashing into the ground.

Me and Weiss fell out of the back of the ship before everything went dark.

A few hours later

I slowly opened my eyes as two shadows fell over me. Looking up, I saw two bandit-looking guys. "Help...please." Weiss pleaded.

"What do you think?" one of them asked a woman as she joined them. She had pitch black hair and red eyes. She looked a bit familiar but I couldn't quite place my finger on it.

"I think..." the woman smirked. "We just hit the jackpot." she brought her leg up and kicked Weiss, knocking her out.

"What about...him?"

The woman glanced at me and was about to say something but stopped herself. "Bring him with."

"Will do." he hit me with the butt of his gun.

End of chapter 29


	30. Chapter 30

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV, hours later

"Ugh." I woke up with a slight headache. "Damn." glancing around, I noticed I was in some sort of makeshift cage. A slight groan came from my left as I glanced over to see Weiss slowly sit up. "Weiss!" I slid over to her. "You okay?"

"Yeah." she winced. "My head hurts a little." she glanced around. "Where are we?"

"From the looks of it...nowhere good."

"Well, well, well, looks who's awake." one of the bandits said as he tapped the other to get his attention.

"What's going on?" Weiss asked. "Where are we?"

"You know...I never thought I'd see a Schnee in this camp." a girl said as she walked towards the cage.

"Vernal?!" the two bandits quickly stood at attention.

"Keeping the boys on a short leash?" I asked with a chuckle. I glanced to Vernal and noticed she had my katana on her back and Weiss' rapier in her hands.

"What do you want?" Weiss growled.

"Straight to the point. I like it." Vernal smirked. "We don't normally deal with trafficking people - not really worth our time."

"Really?" I scoffed. "Then why not let us go?"

"But," Vernal continued, ignoring me. "Once we realized we had a Schnee, that changed."

"You're going to ransom me back to my father, is that it?" Weiss asked.

"It's a shame you're a Schnee." Vernal said. "You'd probably do quite well around here."

"I would never sink to your level." Weiss told the girl.

"Just keep quiet and cooperate and you'll be back in your mansion before you know it." she said, causing me to clench my fists. Vernal turned to leave but glanced back one last time. "Don't make this complicated."

"What's going to make this complicated is when my sister finds out that I didn't make it to Mistral." Weiss replied. "You know my sister, don't you? Winter Schnee? Special Operative of the Atlas Military? She's in Mistral now, and when she hears I'm missing, it won't take her long to find me. And you."

The two bandits started laughing.

"What's so funny?"

"Oh, I don't know if it's more funny or sad," Vernal said as she turned to face us. "but you're clearly out of the loop. Your sister isn't in Mistral anymore. No Atlas personnel are in Mistral anymore. General Ironwood closed the borders and recalled all of his little troops and tin cans. No one is coming to rescue you." she turned to me. "As for you,"

"You have nothing to say that I want to hear!" I growled.

She smirked. "You have a choice. A...gift from our leader." I raised my eyebrow. "Join us or-"

"I'm quite comfortable where I am, thank you." I cut her off. "You can tell your 'leader' I'm not interested."

A few hours later

Me and Weiss sat in the cage. All of the bandits were passed out.

Weiss turned her back to the camp and created a small glyph in her hands. A tiny version of the knight she summoned popped into her palms.

"That's pretty cool." I whispered. "So, what's the plan?"

"I'm working on it." she made the knight disappear. "We should get some rest."

I yawned. "Alright." she laid down in the dirt. Laying down next to her, I closed my eyes.

Hours later

I woke up to the sounds of metal hitting metal. Sitting up, I saw the small knight Weiss had summoned, hitting the bars of the cage.

"Shouldn't he...cut the ropes first?" I asked, showing my bonded wrists.

"Right."

The knight walked over to Weiss and cut the ropes around her wrists before doing the same to mine.

"So, what's the plan exactly?"

"The bandits are all distracted by...something. So now would be the best time to break out." Weiss replied.

"Wouldn't it be useful if he was a bit more...ya know, tall?"

"I can't let the bandits see us." Weiss said. "This will take longer but...we'll be less likely to be noticed."

"Guess we'll just have to-" the sound of one of the tents falling over caught our attention. "wait."

Weiss stood up and walked closer to the bars as I did the same. "Yang?"

The blonde haired girl turned to us. "Weiss?! Liam?!"

"Alright, well, subtlety is out."

The knight started to grow, busting the top of the cage off and allowing us to get out. We both ran to Yang's side.

"What is that?" Yang asked.

"Don't worry about it. What are you doing here?" Weiss asked her.

"Well, that's my mom and she can take us to Ruby." Yang replied.

I glanced over to the woman who kidnapped us. "Raven?!"

"Your mom kidnapped us?!"

"You kidnapped them?!"

Raven glared at us as her bandits started to rush us. We all turned to fight but stopped as a lightning bolt struck directly in front of us.

"Enough!"

"Thank you." Raven said to Vernal. "If you people don't keep it together this place will be crawling with Grimm. Give them their weapons back." Raven ordered Vernal who hesitantly did so. I caught my katana and unsheathed it, looking over every inch to make sure it wasn't damaged before sheathing it and placing the scabbard on my back. "You three. In my tent. Now."

"Why?" Yang growled.

"If you're really going after your sister, then you need to know the truth." Raven said before walking back into her tent.

I glanced around as the other bandits walked away. "Sorry about-" Yang was cut off as Weiss hugged her.

"I missed you so much."

"I missed you, too." Yang returned the hug.

I smirked at the two before following Raven inside. Pushing through the tent's entrance and crossing my arms.

End of chapter 30


	31. Chapter 31

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV

I stood in the corner of the tent, arms crossed as I listened to the conversation between Weiss, Yang and Raven.

"So, what's the 'truth'?" Yang asked.

Raven took a sip of her tea. "You know, it's better when it's hot."

I clenched my fists, holding back the anger that was quickly growing.

"You know, you're really obnoxious." Weiss said.

"The truth is that 'truth' is hard to come by." Raven said, answering Yang's question.

"No shit." I growled.

Raven glared at me out of the corner of her eye before continuing. "A story of victory for one person is a story of defeat for someone else. By now, your uncle has surely told Ruby and her friends plenty of stories."

"Well, he's never given me a reason to doubt him before." Yang said.

"That doesn't mean those stories don't exist." Raven replied. "You know, you and your teammates might as well be the poster children for the Huntsman academies. Your motives vary, but you all enrolled to try and make the world a better place. It's adorable."

"Better than hiding out in the forest, waiting for the world to change." I snapped.

"It's what Huntsmen and Huntresses do." Yang told her mother.

"Not all of them." Raven replied. "Some people are just in it for the money and the fame, but there's even more that are just looking to grow stronger. Your uncle Qrow and I didn't attend Beacon to become Huntsmen, we did it to learn how to kill Huntsmen."

"Bullshit!"

Raven smirked at me. "Daddy and Uncle left that part out, hm? Aside from the Grimm, Huntsmen were the only ones capable of ruining our raids and hunting us down. Our tribe needed a counterforce. And Qrow and I were the perfect age. The entrance exams were child's play compared to what we'd already been through." she stood up. "We were good. So good, that we caught the attention of Beacon's very own headmaster, Professor Ozpin. Even after we were put on a team, I could tell he was keeping his eye on us. Back then, I thought it was because he knew, but it was team STRQ that he was interested in."

"What do you mean?" I growled.

"Constant attention, extra training missions, turning a blind eye whenever we happened to break the rules and get into more trouble than we should've. Sound familiar?" she turned to Weiss and Yang who shared a quick glance.

"What's your point?" Yang asked.

"How much do you know about Professor Ozpin?" Raven asked. "About his past?"

"He was...a prodigy." Weiss answered. "One of the youngest headmasters to be appointed to a school."

"Because that's how he planned it. Because the man you know as Ozpin designed those schools and has followers inside every academy on Remnant that are loyal to him and no one else." Raven told us.

"That doesn't make any sense!" Yang said. "How could he have-? No. Why would someone even do that?"

"Because old man Oz has a great and terrible secret. One that could spread fear across the world." Raven answered. "One that he eventually entrusted to our team, and once I knew, there was no going back. I needed to know more, but with every new discovery I made, the more horrifying the world became."

"Okay, then tell us. What's the big secret? What's so crazy that the rest of us don't know?" Yang asked.

"The creatures of Grimm...have a master named Salem." Raven said. "She can't be stopped, she can't be reasoned with, and she will not rest until humanity crumbles at her feet."

"What?"

Raven slowly turned to Weiss and Yang. "You know, you two haven't even touched your tea."

Yang slowly stood up. "Why should we believe any of this?"

"Now you're catching on." Raven told her. "So far you've done nothing but accept what others tell you," she walked up to Yang. "but you need to question everything." she turned around and walked away. "Otherwise you'll end up just as blind as Qrow..." I clenched my fists. "...and your fool of a father."

Yang shot the table they sat at, sending cups and broken wood everywhere. "Don't you are talk about my family like that!"

Vernal walked in, pointing a gun at Yang. "You need to calm down."

"Yang, please." Weiss grabbed her hand.

"Listen to your friend, Yang." Raven said. "Your teammates never let you down before."

"You don't know the first thing about my teammates!" Yang shouted. "About me! You were never there! You left us! Why?"

"I know more than you realize." Raven said. "Not just about you, and not just what I've been told, but things I've seen with my own eyes. I know the Grimm have a leader, I know people who can come back from the dead, I know that magic is real, and I can prove it. You said Tai told you all about my semblance. Well, I doubt he ever told you what Oz did to my brother and me...and you." she glanced at me for a split second before leaving through the back of the tent.

We all glanced at each other. "Me?" I repeated.

"Go see for yourself." Vernal said before leaving the tent.

We all walked out through the back of the tent. "Mom?" Yang called out.

"Yang, are you okay?" Weiss asked her.

"I'll be fine once we can get her to take us to Ruby." Yang replied.

"It's okay if...you're not okay."

"You didn't believe what she said, right?" Yang asked Weiss.

"I...of course not. Well, not all of it. It was crazy." Weiss said. "We have dust, semblances...but, I mean, there's no such thing as real magic."

A bird cawed, getting all of our attention. We looked up to see a raven flying overhead. "I've...seen that bird before."

"Maybe it belongs to your mom?" Weiss suggested.

It flew down and towards us through a few trees before...turning into Raven?

She landed in front of us, standing up with a smirk.

"How...did you do that?" Yang asked.

I stared at her. "That's...not your semblance." I scratched the back of my head, confused. "H-how...?"

"Well, I could explain it to you..." she created a portal behind her. "...or you could ask Qrow."

"You're letting us go?" Yang asked.

"I'm giving you a choice." Raven replied. "Stay here, with me, and I'll answer all of your questions and more. We can have a fresh start. Or...you can go back to Qrow and join Ozpin's impossible war against Salem. And meet the same fate as so many others. But can you really go back to trusting someone that's kept so much from you?"

I was going back and forth between the two options. "All I care about is making sure my sister is safe." Yang said. She went and got her motorcycle, returning a few minutes later. Weiss got on the back as I still thought about my choice.

"You coming?" Weiss asked.

"I'm...not sure." I said softly.

"What?!" the two said at the same time.

"What about Ruby?" Yang asked as Weiss just stared at me.

"Y-you're right." I nodded. "I'll be there right after you."

They both smiled and were about to go through. "Yang. If you side with your uncle, I may not be as kind the next time we meet."

"You weren't kind this time either." Yang said before going through the portal.

Raven sighed. "I know."

I thought about my choice one last time. "Raven." I turned to her. "I'm glad I got to see you, even if our meeting did start with you knocking me out."

She nodded slowly. "I'm glad I got to see you as well."

I walked through the portal, joining Weiss and Yang on some sort of balcony, overlooking Mistral.

"Liam!"

"Huh?" I looked over to the source, seeing my father standing a few feet away. "Oh, yeah."

"Where's Ruby?" Yang asked.

"She's inside. I'll take you to her." Qrow led Weiss and Yang inside as I stayed behind.

"You coming?" Weiss asked.

"Yeah...I'll...be there in a bit." they all walked inside as I ran a hand through my hair. There were so many questions I had, but only one stuck out the most. "If me turning into a crow isn't my semblance...what is?"

End of chapter 31


	32. Chapter 32

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV

"Liam!" I felt two arms wrap around me as soon as I stepped foot into the house. Glancing down, I saw Ruby holding onto me as tight as she could. I returned it and heard her gasp. She quickly pulled away and stared at my left arm. "You got one too!"

"Huh?" I glanced down at my mechanical arm. "Oh, yeah! It was almost finished when I went to Atlas." I told her. "Before me and Weiss left, it was finished and Ironwood just gave it to me."

"You guys coming?" a familiar voice called from the kitchen. "Food's ready!"

"Come on." Ruby gestured for us to follow.

Walking into the next room, I was met with a few friendly faces. "Nora, Ren, Jaune." I smirked. "Good to see you guys again."

"Likewise." Ren said as he took a seat at the table. "But it's not just us."

"Hm?"

"I'd be careful, it's a little hot." the pot of food was placed in front of us.

"Good to see you again, Pyrrha." Yang said as the redheaded girl took a seat next to Jaune.

"It's good to see you three as well." she glanced over to me. "Thank you, Liam."

"For what?"

"Saving me back at Beacon." her eyes darkened as she glanced over my left arm. "I'm so sorry."

"What, this?" I held up my mechanical arm. "This wasn't your fault."

"If I hadn't-"

"Pyrrha." I said softly. "We can't change the past. So, let's focus on the present."

She smiled. "Right."

"Alright!" Ruby handed out bowls and plates before dishing out the food.

"Itadakimasu!" I said as I took a bite.

"Ita...da...what?" Ruby asked.

"It's a Japanese word." Ren said. "It means 'let's eat'."

"So, what have you guys been up to?" I asked Ruby and JNPR. "Walking from Patch must have been difficult."

"It wasn't easy." Ruby chuckled. "But we made it."

"We ran into a rare Grimm." Pyrrha said. "A Nuckelavee."

"Nuckelavee?" I repeated.

"It's a type of...a...hmm." Ruby scratched her head. "It was a horse with a Grimm rider, I guess you could say."

"Sounds...interesting." I shrugged. "How'd you guys take it down?"

"We had to pin it's arms and take down the horse." Nora said. "Ren took care of the rest."

"Did you see Ren during that fight? He was out of control!" Ruby added.

"I'm sorry, I may have lost my temper momentarily." Ren said.

"No, no! Out of control as in 'awesome'!"

"Oooh. Thank you." Ren smiled as the table lit up with laughter.

We continued to eat as we told stories of our journeys. "You did not!" Ruby yelped.

Weiss covered her face with her hands. "Yeah, right in the middle of the party."

"Please tell me you let that lady have it." Yang said.

"Of course not!" Weiss replied. "Even if I did really want to."

"If I would have known she was talking about Vale like that, I wouldn't have killed it." I smirked as Weiss glanced at me.

"No way, I don't believe it." Nora crossed her arms. Weiss summoned a Boarbatusk next to Nora who yelped as she looked at it, falling over as we laughed.

We ate a bit more of the food, leaving almost none left.

"It's no replacement for the real thing." Yang said as she showed off her mechanical arm. "But I'll be sure to make good use of it."

"That's amazing." Jaune said as he stared at it.

Ruby gasped as she rushed over to get a closer look. "And it's just as strong?"

"Sure is."

Nora slammed her arm on the table. "Wanna bet?!" she asked, challenging Yang to an arm wrestle.

"Nora, please, now's not the time." Weiss said but was ignored as Yang rushed over. Nora and Yang seemed evenly matched, trying to overpower the other.

"C'mon, sis! You can't lose to a girl in a skirt!" Ruby cheered.

"You wear a skirt, Ruby." Weiss said.

"You're not cheering loud enough!" Ruby said to Weiss.

I crossed my arms as Nora and Yang continued to struggle against the other's strength. "It definitely feels like the original. I'll give you that!"

"Yep. But, it does have some new features!" Yang said.

"Heh, oh yeah?"

There was a slight clicking noise before Nora was slammed into the wall behind her, holding Yang's robot arm.

"Did she..win?" Jaune asked.

Nora screamed as she threw Yang's arm back to her. "Can yours do anything like that?" Ruby asked me.

"Honestly, I'm not sure." I looked it over. "I didn't look for any unique features, so it might have something."

I continued to look it over when a the side of the arm popped open. "Hm?" I glanced at it and saw the tip of what looked like a gun. "Guess it does have something." the gun retreated into the arm as dad and some kid walked in.

"How can eight kids possible make so much noise eating dinner?!" he asked as he took a sip of his whiskey.

"Who's the pipsqueak?" I asked, gesturing to the kid.

My dad sighed. "You might want to listen to this."

Minutes later

Yang sat cross-armed as I was trying to process everything I had just been told. Ozpin is dead and had reincarnated into this kid, Oscar Pine.

"So, the maidens. Magic. Salem." Weiss said. "It's all true?"

"Uh-huh." Qrow stood cross-armed.

"Miss Xiao Long," Ozpin said. "is this more or less what your mother told you?"

Yang sat silent. "For the most part." Weiss answered.

"You forgot something." Yang said. "You forgot to tell everyone what you did to Qrow, Liam and my mother."

"What is she talking about?" Jaune asked.

"Oh, great."

"Hm, that's not a secret I thought she would give up so easily." Ozpin said. "Your mother must trust you a great deal."

I leaned back against the couch. "Stop stalling!" I growled.

He sighed. "My ability to reincarnate, though a curse, isn't without a few key benefits. Much like the maidens, I too possess a certain...'magical' power." he stood up and walked towards my dad. "Using this power, I was able to gift the Branwen twins, and later, Qrow's son, the ability to 'see' more, to move freely and be unburdened by their natural bodies. I...well...gave them the ability to turn into birds. Rather ridiculous sounding out loud, isn't it?"

"Uncle?" Ruby said softly.

"You turned them...into birds?" Ren repeated.

"Alright, now you're just messing with us." Nora said.

"What else is new?" Jaune crossed his arms.

"He's telling the truth." Weiss said. "We saw it, Yang's mom...changed, right in front of us."

"You told me it was my 'semblance'." I glared at my father.

"Why would you do something like that?" Yang asked the Professor. "I mean, what is wrong with you?"

"Yang, that's enough." my dad said. "We made a choice. We wanted this."

"Thanks for giving me that 'choice'." I said with sarcasm.

"May I?" Ozpin asked my dad, who gave a nod. "Granting this power to them was no trivial task, and I can assure you it was not done frivolously. I required assistance in gathering information on Salem's plans, as well as searching for maidens when their hosts became unclear."

"Okay, so, have you done this with others?" Ruby asked. "Like General Ironwood? Or Professor Goodwitch?"

"As helpful as that might be, unfortunately it is not that simple." Ozpin said. "My power is finite, and if I'm being honest, dwindling. The amount that I gifted to Qrow, Liam and Raven was, all things considered, rather miniscule. You see, centuries ago, I sacrificed a great deal of magic to four young women, who I hoped would use my gift for good. They were the first maidens." he turned to Yang. "Miss Xiao Long, it was never my intention to lie to you. To any of you. There are just some matters that I prefer to...'play close to the chest'. I believe that's how you phrased it?" he asked my father.

"Heh. Yeah."

"Everyone has a choice." Ozpin continued. "The Branwens chose to accept their powers and the responsibilities that came with them. And later, one of them chose to abandon her duties, in favor of her own self-interest. Now, all of you have a choice. If anyone wishes to leave, now is the time. There's no shame or disgrace im abstaining, only in retreat." none of us moved. "Very well, then." Yang stood up.

"Yang?" Ruby said softly.

"If Ruby and Liam stick around, then I will too." she said. "If there's one thing I know about them, it's that they somehow always know the right thing to do. But, if we're going to help, if we're going to keep risking our lives, no more lies. No more half-truths."

There was a slight pause. "Understood."

Yang sat back down, crossing her arms. "So...what now?" Pyrrha asked. "I mean, what can we do?"

"Mm, that is a difficult question. One thay I believe is best answered tomorrow." Ozpin replied.

"What do you mean?"

"The road ahead is undoubtedly filled with hardships and peril." Ozpin said, placing a hand on Yang's shoulder. "However, it's been far too long since you have all been together. Please, take tonight, enjoy this moment." his eyes flashed yellow and he quickly removed his hand from Yang's shoulder with a yelp.

"Oooooohh." Nora said. "Raven?! Qrow?! Liam?! They're birds! Cracked it!"

"Hm." I glared at the kid.

"What?" he asked.

"I assume Ozpin can still hear everything, right?" I asked him.

"Uhm..."

"I have a few questions for him." I turned to my father. "And you." I pushed myself to my feet and walked down the hall, stopping halfway. "Which room isn't taken?"

End of chapter 32


	33. Chapter 33

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen 33

Liam's POV, a few hours later

I fell into my bed, staring at the ceiling as the door to my room slowly opened. "Liam?" Oscar said softly. "You said you wanted to talk to Ozpin?"

"Yeah." I sat up. "Is my father coming?"

"Right here." he walked into the room. "What's up?"

I turned to the kid and stared at him. He must have gotten the idea because he glowed green for a split second. "Mr. Branwen." Ozpin said. "What is it you wanted to ask?"

"Why?" I crossed my arms.

"You're talking about the bird ability." Ozpin said.

"Yes." I stood up. "Why?"

My dad sighed. "Because I knew you would need it in the future." he answered. "I asked Oz if he could grant you the power as well and he accepted."

"That's not good enough." I shook my head. "I know there was another reason why you wanted me to have this power as well."

"Do you not want the ability?" Ozpin asked.

"Oh, don't get me wrong, the ability to turn into a bird is...awesome." I replied. "I just want to know what the game plan was."

"Oh." Qrow chuckled. "If I'm being honest, the plan was for you to help me gather info about the-"

"The maidens." I cut him off. "I see. When I graduated Beacon, you wanted me to be a spy for Oz."

"I was hoping, yes." he nodded.

I chuckled. "Bit selfish, don't ya think? Having someone give your son a power for your own...mission. If you can call it that."

"I needed the help." he said, shamefully. "Raven left and Oz needed help against Salem."

"And if I said 'no'?" I asked. "What then, hm?"

"I'm...not sure. I thought you'd want to help humanity." he replied with a shrug.

I crossed my arms. "Just a bit...I dunno...presumptuous? I mean, I do want to help, just thought it was kinda weird, Oz giving an infant the ability to turn into a bird without knowing if that kid would even help."

"He has a point." Oz said as he glanced at Qrow. "Now, if you'll excuse me." he flashed green as Oscar took back over.

He looked around a bit before glancing at the door. "Uhm. I'll just be...leaving now." he said nervously before leaving the room.

"So," my dad said, turning to me. "you aren't mad, are you?"

"I was...at first. But all I wanted was an explanation." I shrugged.

"Right." he chuckled. "I'll...leave you alone." he left the room as I fell back in my bed.

A half hour later

It was pretty late so I decided to get some rest. "Hey." I sat up to see Weiss standing in the doorway, wearing her nightgown. "All of the other rooms were taken." she was rubbing her arm nervously. "Could I...sleep in here?"

"Yeah." I moved to the side so she could lay down comfortably. She got into bed next to me and rolled onto her side, facing me as I stared into her light blue eyes. "You're beautiful." Her face turned a light shade of red as she glanced away. I gently grabbed her chin to look in her eyes again. "I love you."

"...Liam." her face turned a darker red as I leaned in and gently pressed my lips against hers. Weiss shifted her body a bit before moving on top of me. "Liam...I...need to tell you..." she stopped, too embarrassed to say anymore.

"What?" I asked. She glanced away.

"Once you found me in Atlas...I...felt something. Something that had been forgotten since Beacon fell. And...I realized...you're the person I want to be with." she said as our eyes met again. "I love you."

I felt a massive wave of happiness as those words left her lips. I leaned up and pressed my lips against hers again as she deepened it by leaning forward. Feeling her tongue rub against my bottom lip, I parted them to let our tongues meet in a dance of passion instead of a fight for dominance.

Pulling away for air, Weiss stared down at me, a darker shade of red on her face than from moments before. "I...want to..." she trailed off.

"Are you sure?" I asked, knowing what she meant.

She nodded in reply. Running my hands up her arms, I felt her stiffen from the coldness of my mechanical arm. She relaxed and leaned forward so our lips could meet again.

Moving my hands around her, I slowly ran then up her back, and under her nightgown. Finding the strap to her bra, I looked into her eyes for confirmation. Giving me a slight nod, I unclipped her bra.

Letting it fall out of her nightgown, she tossed it off the side of the bed.

I went to remove her nightgown but she stopped me. "I know they aren't...big but-" I silenced her with a quick kiss.

"They're perfect." I told her. "Like you."

She shook her head playfully, a slight smile on her face. "I'm not perfect."

"To me, you are."

She blushed as she let me remove the gown. "Be gentle. It's my first time." she whispered.

"I could never hurt you."

About an hour later

Exhausted, me and Weiss slowly fell asleep, with her on top of me. I wrapped my arms around her as her head nuzzled against my neck.

"I love you." I whispered to her before letting my eyes close.

End of chapter 33


	34. Chapter 34

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV, the following morning

Slowly, I opened my eyes. I tried to move but felt something on top of me that kept me from sitting up. I looked down to see Weiss, still asleep. Her hair was covering her eyes, so I gently tucked the strands behind her ear, accidentally waking her up as well.

"Good morning." I said softly, smiling at her.

"Good morning." she smiled back. "Last night was...amazing."

"It was."

She slowly sat up, revealing the top half of her body to me. I stared at her chest for a second before moving my eyes to meet hers. "I'm sure we should get up."

"Probably." I shrugged. "But...why not stay in bed for a bit?"

She smirked. "That does sound tempting. But, they might get the wrong idea if we stay in bed too long."

I sighed. "Yeah."

She swung her feet off the side of the bed and stood up, her nude body shining in the morning light. She grabbed a few clothes and started to dress herself. "Can you help?" she turned to me, holding a bra.

"Yeah." I opened the dresser by the bed and grabbed out a pair of boxers, slightly baggy blue jeans, and a red shirt. I put the boxers and jeans on before walking over to Weiss to help put on her bra.

"Thank you." Weiss smiled as she grabbed her dress and put it on.

"Beautiful." I said as I pulled on my shirt.

She slipped her heels on before walking out the door, glancing back at me with a smile before leaving. Putting my shoes on, I followed shortly after.

"Good morning, Liam." Pyrrha said from the couch.

"Good morning." I returned. "Where's Jaune?"

"Still asleep." she answered. "The only people up at the moment are you, me, Ruby, Yang and Weiss." she glanced down at my arm. "I'm sorry."

I lifted my mechanical arm. "This wasn't your fault." I looked closer at it. It was fully chrome, which made it look kind of boring. "Do we have any spray cans? Red and black?"

"Not that I know of." she shook her head. "But there is a store not far from here."

"Where?"

"Uhm." she placed her finger on her chin. "I think it's right by the academy but I'm not sure of it's exact location."

"Thanks." I glanced around a bit. "If anyone asks, tell 'em I left for a bit."

"Sure thing."

A few minutes later

I walked down the streets, hands in my pockets. I made my way to the academy since that's where Pyrrha said the shop was near, and found the store she was talking about.

Walking inside, I approached the counter. "Do you sell spray paint?" I asked the cashier.

"Near the back." he said, not really caring.

I gave a slight nod and walked down the aisle, find two cans of spray paint. One red, the other black. I took them up to the cashier and paid before leaving.

I made my way back to the house and grabbed a wooden board from the kitchen before heading out back.

Weiss, Yang and Ruby were all talking out here but none of them seemed to notice me. I took my arm off and placed it on the board before pulling out the black spray paint, shaking it a bit before getting to work.

I was making the bottom of the arm black, like Yang's since I thought it looked good, and the rest Red.

It didn't take me long to finish it so now all I had to do was wait for it to dry.

"Don't tell me to calm down!" I heard Yang yell. She stood up and walked passed me, heading back inside.

"What was that about?" I asked the two still out here.

They glanced at each other before sighing. "Nothing." Ruby said.

Weiss stood up and walked towards me. "Yang's...just a bit upset is all. I'm gonna go talk to her."

I nodded. "Alright."

She walked inside as Ruby walked to me. "Whatchya doing?" she stared at my arm.

"Thought it might look better colored." I replied. "So I went out and bought some spray paint."

"Looks good."

"Just have to wait for it to dry." I sat back, looking up at the sky. "Beautiful day."

"Mmhmm." Ruby nodded. "I'm gonna head inside."

An hour later

I touched the palm of my mechanical hand to test the paint. I pulled my fingers back and rubbed them together. "It's dry." I gently ran my fingers up the arm to see if all of it was dry. Feeling it was, I picked it up and put it back on, opening and clenching my hand a few times before heading inside.

"Whoa." Jaune said. He was sitting next to Pyrrha. "Cool arm."

"Thanks." I rubbed the back of my head. "I didn't really like the chrome."

"Hm."

There wasn't really much to do around here. I walked back to my room and went inside. Heading over to the bed, I sat down, pulling my shirt off and throwing it into the basket that lay a few feet away.

I fell into the bed, slowly closing my eyes.

A few hours later, Weiss' POV

It had gotten dark so I started to head back to the room. I walked in and kicked my heels off in the corner of the room before heading towards the bed. I was about to lay down when I heard multiple quick sharp breaths.

It was dark so I couldn't really tell what was going on.

I moved a bit closer to Liam and placed my hand against his forehead. He felt warm...too warm.

"Cin...der." his head fell to the side. "Weiss...don't...Weiss."

Liam's POV

 _Weiss was bloody, her body motionless as Cinder slowly walked towards her._

 _"Stay away from her!" I shouted at Cinder._

 _She chuckled. "Do you think you'll be able to save her, like you did with the Spartan girl?"_

 _I tried to lunge at her but couldn't. I glanced back and saw my hands and feet were shackled to the wall. I looked back at Cinder to see her create a bow and arrow out of glass._

 _"NO!" I tried to lunge at her again but couldn't. "Leave her out of this!"_

 _"It's okay, Liam." Weiss said, as if she was whispering in my ear. The sound of her voice seemed to calm me down as Cinder and Weiss' bloody figure disappeared into nothingness._

 _"Weiss."_

 _"You're just having a nightmare." her voice whispered._

 _"Weiss."_

Weiss' POV

His breathing slowed as I gently rubbed his head. "You're just having a nightmare." I whispered into his ear.

"Wei..ss."

He rolled over in his sleep and wrapped his arm around me, holding me tight. Feeling him hold me, I let myself slowly fall asleep.

The next day, Liam's POV

The morning light woke me from my sleep. As my eyes opened, I saw Weiss nuzzled against me, a slight smile on her face.

Careful not to wake her, I slid out of bed and grabbed a fresh pair of clothes and a towel before heading into the bathroom. "Care if I join?" Weiss asked, making me stop in my tracks.

"If...you want." I replied before entering the bathroon.

She followed me in, letting her nightgown fall to the floor.

30 minutes later

We dried ourselves off before getting dressed. "Weiss! Liam!" Ruby called to us. "We're going to head to the headmaster's office soon! You guys should get ready!"

"Hmph." I pulled my long sleeve shirt over my head. I bent my left arm and heard the shirt tear. I ripped the sleeve off, allowing my mechanical arm more room. "Better."

"So, guess we're going soon." Weiss said.

"Guess so."

End of chapter 34


	35. Chapter 35

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV

Me and the others walked with my dad to the meet up with Leonardo. We walked inside the building and saw Lionheart standing on a balcony.

"Thank you for...coming." Leo greeted. "There...seems to be more of you than last time."

"Eh, you know what they say, 'the more, the merrier'." my dad said. "So what's going on with the council?"

"Why...did you bring your weapons?" Leo asked.

"What?" my dad asked. "Leo, we're huntsmen. You okay?"

"Of course!" Leo replied. "Of course, sorry. Just haven't had my evening coffee."

"Look, it's nice to see you, but we got work to do. Are we getting support from the council or not?" my dad asked him.

"Mom?" Yang said.

I looked to my cousin before following her gaze, seeing a bird perched on a beam. A shot rang out as the bird flew towards Leo, flying behind him and turning into Raven.

"Raven?!" I stared at my aunt.

"If you're going to shoot me, shoot me." she growled at my father. "That was insulting."

"What are you doing here?!" my dad growled back at her.

"I could ask you the same thing. You've been scheming, little brother." Raven said as she walked down the stairs. "Planning to attack your own sister."

"Leo...what have you done?!" Qrow asked the headmaster.

"Leo did what any sane person would in his position - he looked at all the information he had in front of him, assessed the situation, and made a choice." Raven answered for him. "And it seems you all have to."

"You have the Spring maiden." my dad said.

"I do."

"Then hand her over and let's work together!" my dad placed his weapon on his back. "We can beat Salem!"

"All that time spent spying for Ozpin and you still have no idea what you're dealing with." Raven said. "There is no beating Salem!"

"You're wrong." Ruby said. "We've done things that most people would call impossible, and I know the only reason we were able to do it is because we didn't do it alone! We had people to teach us, people to help us, we had each other. Work with us. At least I know we'll have a better chance if we try it together." she held her hand out to Raven. "Please."

"You sound just like your mother." Raven growled. She created a portal and a fireball immediately flew out of it towards Ruby, hitting her directly in her chest and knocking her back.

"Ruby!" Yang ran to her side.

I looked back to Raven to see Vernal, Emerald, Mercury and Cinder walk out of the portal.

I gripped the hilt of my katana and ripped it out of its sheath, holding it at the ready. "Cinder!" I barred my teeth.

"C'mon guys," Mercury said, placing a hand on his hip. "is that any way to greet your old friends?"

I growled at Mercury. "You never know when to shut the fuck up!"

"Everybody, stay calm." my father said.

"Fuck that!" I gripped the hilt of my katana harder. "This bitch is the reason I lost my arm!" I pointed the tip of my weapon at Cinder. I glanced back at her, seeing her left eye covered.

"Aww." she mocked. "Is the little birdie still upset about what happened?"

"RRGH!" I barred my teeth.

The door behind us opened as some big guy walked in. "Glad you could join us Hazel." Mercury mocked.

"The White Fang is prepping demolition and securing the school grounds." he said as he closed the doors. "No one's getting in, and no one's getting out."

"This was all just a trap?" Weiss asked.

"Raven, tell me...how long have you been with them?" my father asked.

"Aww, don't-"

"He wasn't talking to you, bitch!" I cut Cinder off. "So shut your goddamn mouth!"

She glared at me. "You should make sure to watch your tone in the presence of a maiden."

"You should make sure to shut the fuck up!" I gripped my katana harder, feeling the hilt start to cut my hand.

"Aww, it's cute, seeing a bird ruffle its feathers when it gets angry." Cinder said.

"After everything you've done," I twirled my katana so I was holding it backwards. "killed innocents, destroyed Beacon, tried to kill Pyrrha then ME! Then come here just to mock us!" I rushed her and swung my katana. She created a glass sword to block my attack. "I'll enjoy killing you! Every. Second. Of it!" the room exploded into a giant fight.

"Very well." she smirked.

She pushed me back but I quickly rushed her again, giving no room for her to recover from anything I threw at her. I picked up speed with each swing, causing sparks to go flying as our swords collided.

We locked blades. I pushed against her strength as she smirked at me. "You really think you're ready to take on a maiden."

I didn't answer as I dropped down and kicked her feet out from under her. With a loud thud, she landed on her back.

I quickly tried to stab her but she rolled out of the way, swinging her sword at me. I blocked it with my left arm and swung at her while she tried to push me back. She created a second sword and blocked my swing.

"RRGH!" I pushed her sword away with my left arm and threw a right cross, knocking her onto her back.

I tried to finish her off but was met with a ball of fire hitting my face, blocking my vision for a few seconds. I rubbed my eyes as I felt something hit my back, knocking me onto my stomach.

"NOOO!" the room flashed white.

I rolled onto my back to see Cinder, on her knees and holding onto her left arm. I got to my feet and rushed her, lunging forward with my katana. I barely missed her as I fell onto my side.

Cinder got to her feet, her one eye glowing with the power of the maiden. "You thought you could defeat me?!" she growled as she placed her foot on my chest. "You're just a broken man with a death wish."

I heard a loud yell of pain and looked over to see Weiss just as her aura broke. "Weiss!"

Cinder looked back and forth between me and Weiss. "You..." she chuckled. "You have a thing for the Heiress!"

I looked back up at her.

"This is going to be fun." she took her foot off of me and started to walk towards Weiss.

"No." I tried to get to my feet but felt a fireball hit my chest, knocking me back down. Sitting up, I saw Cinder create a spear out of glass before throwing it at Weiss. "NOO!"

I watched as the spear pierced her side. "Weiss."

End of chapter 35


	36. Chapter 36

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Liam's POV

"WEISS!" tears filled my eyes as I got to my feet and rushed passed Cinder, catching Weiss before she fell. I felt her blood coat my hand as I cradled her motionless body. "No! No no NO!" SOMEBODY HELP ME!"

Jaune and Ren were the first to come help. "Jaune, keep pressure on her wound!" Ren ordered. "Liam, lay her down!"

We did as ordered. Panic slowly started to rise as a pool of blood slowly started to form under Weiss.

"We have to do something!"

"You aren't going to be much help panicking!" Ren said.

I looked down at Weiss. "I-I...I can't lose her!" tears rolled down my cheeks as I fell to my knees.

"Ren, talk to me." Jaune told his friend.

"This is bad." Ren said. "I don't think she's going to make it."

"We can't lose anyone." Jaune said, on the verge of tears. "Please!"

I ran my hands through my hair as Weiss' breathing started to slow more and more. "This can't be happening!"

"She's hardly breathing. I...don't know what we can do..." Ren said.

Her breathing stopped entirely. "No."

"It wasn't supposed to be like this!" Jaune cried. "Please!"

I looked down at Weiss again. "Weiss...please..."

I closed my eyes, wishing this was all just a dream.

The sound of someone taking a breath of air made my eyes shoot open as Weiss started breathing again. There was a light brown aura covering Weiss from head to toe. "What's happening?"

"Weiss!" Ruby rushed over to us. "What happened?! What's going on?!"

"I think she's going to be okay! She seems to be stabilizing." Ren answered.

Ruby started to look around at the fights surrounding us. Oscar was having trouble with Hazel and Yang was going up against Mercury and Emerald.

She turned back to Weiss and lifted Jaune's hands, showing the wound had completely closed. "I-It's gone!" I said overjoyed.

"Whatever you're doing, don't stop!" Ruby told Jaune.

"I won't."

"Good." Ruby glanced behind her at Oscar and Hazel. "Oscar needs help."

"I'm on it." Ren stood up.

"Jaune and Weiss still need cover!"

"No one's gonna touch 'em." Nora said as she stood by Jaune.

I looked over to Yang as she was punched back. "Yang needs help."

"I'm on it." Ruby stood up and rushed to help her sister.

I looked down at Weiss' hand and gently took it in my own, feeling her squeeze slightly. "You'll be okay." I said softly, tears falling down my cheeks.

"She's coming to!" Jaune said. "I just wish this would go faster."

"How about you don't complain and just be thankful you unlocked your semblance when you did." Nora said.

"My semblance?"

"How else do you think you're healing her, dummy?" Nora asked.

"No. I don't think I'm healing her." Jaune said. The aura surrounding Weiss turned a light blue. "Our aura heals our bodies. It feels...it feels like I'm using my aura to amplify hers."

"Aren't you worried about running out?"

"Pyrrha once told me I've got a lot of it." Jaune replied. "I still believe her."

Weiss' eyes slowly opened. "Liam?" she asked as our eyes met. "Liam...what's happening?"

"You're awake!" I said, relieved. "You took a heavy hit, Jaune is...restoring your aura so you'll have to stay put for awhile, while the others fight."

She squeezed my hand tighter.

"I'm not going anywhere." I told her. "I'm glad you're okay."

She smiled at me. "Guess I had you worrying for a bit."

I nodded as I looked around at the fights. Everyone seemed worn out.

A siren blared as an airship passed by the building. "What's happening?" Weiss asked.

"I'm not sure." I answered. "How are you feeling?"

"Better." she sat up. "Much better." she created a small glyph in the palm of her hand. It looked detailed, extremely detailed. "Keep it up, Jaune."

He continued to amplify her aura for about a minute before she stood up. "Hmm." she created a glyph in front of her and placed her rapier into the ground, summoning...a Queen lancer!

"No...way!" I smiled at Weiss. "That's badass!"

She smirked at me as the Lancer flew over her head. Its stinger lunged at the exit and came back a moment later with Hazel impaled on the end. As the stinger pulled him closer, I spun around and, using the momentum, kicked Hazel off the stinger and to the ground.

I walked over to where my katana lay and picked it up, twirling it around a bit before holding it at the ready. Looking back at Weiss, she gave me a slight nod.

Looking back at Hazel, I rushed towards him, only to stop dead in my tracks as a familair black-haired Faunus walked into the building.

She looked over everyone in the room before her eyes landed on... "Yang?"

"Yang, go!" Ruby told her sister. She ran towards the entrance to the vault but Mercury grabbed her arm. Yang glared at him, her eyes red, but looked away, detaching her arm before jumping down into the vault.

Turning my attention back to Hazel, he lunged at me, wrapping his fingers around my throat.

"ARGH!" I struggled against his hold. "RGH!" I tried to break free but he wouldn't ease up.

"Liam!" Weiss' Lancer tried to attack but its stinger was knocked away by Emerald.

I grabbed his wrist and kicked out, feeling myself get free of his grip. Landing a few feet away, I picked up my katana and held it at the ready.

Hazel glared at me as Weiss' Lancer tried to launch its stinger at him again. He knocked it away and launched a fireball at the Lancer, making it dissipate.

We all stared at the fading Lancer when Blake jumped through the white dust, kicking Hazel to the ground.

She landed next to Weiss and Ruby as I turned back to Mercury, Emerald and Hazel.

I was about to attack when I felt something hit my back, causing me to stumble forward. Looking at what had hit me, my eyes landed on Lionheart just as my sister shot him in the shoulder, depleting his aura.

He turned around and ran further into the building.

"You've got to be kidding me." Mercury sighed.

Hazel let out a yell, causing my attention to focus back on him. "Focus on Emerald and Mercury!" I told Ruby, Weiss and Blake. "I got Hazel."

"Very well." he said before lunging at me.

Time seemed to slow down as I ducked to the side, hitting his leg with the hilt of my katana.

I backed up as Hazel turned to me.

A look of shock was spread across his face as he looked at me then beside me. Glancing to my left, I saw someone who looked just like me, staring back at me.

"This is...interesting." I took a closer look, leaning forward a bit. My...copy did the exact same. "I see."

I turned back to Hazel with a smirk. I twirled my katana as my copy did the same.

I rushed forward as Hazel brought his fist back, throwing a punch at my copy, which seemed to fade as Hazel's punch connected.

 _"Guess that's my semblance. Heh, unique."_

I ducked under a right cross and kicked Hazel in the gut, which did almost nothing. He punched me, sending me flying into the wall behind me. As the smoke cleared, I slowly sheathed my katana, taking the scabbard off my back.

I twisted my left arm, hearing the gun pop out. Rushing forward, I attacked with the scabbard before throwing a punch with my left arm, firing a shot point-blank into his side.

Hazel didn't seem affected at all. He threw punch after punch. I ducked and jumped over each attack. He was sloppy, but his speed gave him an advantage.

I hit the back of his head with the scabbard before taking the blade out, slicing his side before kicking myself away from him. Sliding next to my friends, Ruby spoke up.

"That's enough! Just...give up!"

Mercury punched the ground in frustration. "It's not over!" Emerald yelled. "Cinder will come back, she'll have the relic, and she'll stop all of you! She won't let us down."

The elevator to the vault came back up, Yang on top of it holding a lantern. Emerald fell to her knees.

"Emerald, get up, we need to go." I heard Mercury whisper to her. "Emerald!"

I turned to them. "You're not leav-" I was cut off as Emerald gripped her head and let out a yell of pain.

The room darkened as black smoke circled in the center of the room, a large figure emerging from it. She had red eyes, white skin with red veins. Her arms looked broken and snapped as they fixed themselves.

It let out a shriek before lunging at us.

I fell onto my back, my eyes wide with horror, as the room went back to normal. "What...the fuck...was that?"

"An illusion." Ozpin answered. "But an accurate one." he looked at all of us. "That...was Salem."

I glanced around the room as everyone caught their breaths. Blake ran off to be with her parents and Sun, who apparently was here. Ruby, Weiss and Yang were chatting and JNPR was doing the same.

Tired, I sat down to let my legs rest. "That was fun."

Jaune walked in front of me and offered to help me up. Taking his hand, he wrapped my arm around his neck as we walked over to his team.

"You look like crap." Nora smirked.

"Feel like it too." I chuckled.

"I could use a good nights rest." Nora yawned.

"Me too." Pyrrha agreed.

"Guess that's our top priority." I joked. I glanced behind me at Weiss. "I'm...gonna go check on her."

"Okay." Pyrrha smiled.

I walked away from JNPR and was about to reach RWBY when I saw my dad and Ozpin talking. Curious, I walked over.

"We must...get the lattern to...Atlas." the kid said before passing out.

"Oh no." I rubbed my forehead. "Weiss isn't gonna like this."

End of chapter 36


	37. Chapter 37

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

(Please DO NOT read unless you have watched RWBY volume 6 episode 1! Hope you all enjoy!)

Chapter 37

2 weeks after the attack on Haven

Liam

We, Weiss, Yang and the members of team JNPR, sat in a train station, waiting for our ride to Argus. A sigh from Weiss turned my attention to her. "Hey." I placed my arm around her. "You okay?"

"Yeah." she nodded. "Just...I don't want to be trapped in Atlas again."

"We won't let that happen." I replied.

"I'll hold you to that." she rested her head against me. "Thank you."

A red blurr made us jump as Ruby stood with her hands behind her back, smiling. "And?" Yang asked.

"AH!" she showed Yang a brown bag.

"What an absolute waste of time-"

"What did you get me?" Yang interrupted, excited.

"You'll have to wait and see." Ruby replied, sticking her tongue out at her sister.

"No fair." Yang tried to snatch the bag but Ruby dodged her sister.

"Oh, I can't believe we're taking the train to Argus!" Nora shouted as she broke up the two sisters. "The beautiful northern coastline...you think it's too early for beach season?"

"Unfortunately, but we will be one step closer to Atlas." Ren replied.

"Well, I'm glad you're all excited." Weiss said. "But I don't think you appreciate the trouble I went through to leave Atlas."

"I know you're worried, Weiss, but trust us." Ruby said. "Team RWBY won't leave your side for a second! I promise."

"No one's gotta be worried with us around." I glanced to our right and saw two Huntsmen.

"And you are?" Nora asked.

"Why Dee and Dudley of course." one of them replied. "The Argus Limited's very own Huntsmen. We'll be keeping everyone safe as we pass through Grimm territory."

"But for a generous tip, we can make sure your passenger car gets extra special attention should things get dangerous." the other added.

"Yeah, I got a tip for you." my father said as he stepped in front of the two.

"Huh?"

"Buzz off. Looks like Mistral is really scraping the bottom of the barrel these days." my dad added as Yang and Ruby made faces at the two Huntsmen.

"Hey, you're talking to a-"

"Professional Huntsman, right." my dad held up his scroll, showing he was a Huntsman, too. "Well, it seems like one of you heroes left the staff entrance to the caboose wide open. It'd be a shame to lose your job before it even started."

"I didn't do it." one said to the other.

"Come on, dummy." they both walked off, arguing.

"You know sometimes the burden of saving the world feels overwhelming." Oscar said. "But then people like that come along and make me grateful that it's our job and not theirs."

"Uh-huh." we all agreed.

"So, you kids ready to go?" my dad asked. "Bike all loaded up?"

"Yep!"

"Just waiting on Blake." Weiss said. "As usual."

"Heheh." I chuckled. Glancing back at the train, I noticed Pyrrha was standing off by herself. "Hm..." standing up, I started making my way towards the spartan.

"Where are you going?" Weiss asked me.

"I'll be right back." I replied.

Approaching the girl, I stood in front of her. "Hey."

"Hi, Liam." Pyrrha smiled. "Something wrong?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing." I placed a hand on my hip.

"I'm fine." she answered sweetly.

"Why not join us?" I asked.

"No reason." she shrugged. "Just waiting until it's time for us to leave."

"Uh-huh..." I crossed my arms. "Well, we should be-"

 _"Train to Argus leaving in 5 minutes."_ the intercom announced.

"Leaving soon..."

Minutes later, train for Argus

I pulled my black long-sleeve shirt over my head. Hearing the shirt tear as I bent my mechanical arm, I sighed as I ripped the fabric off. Grabbing the trench coat my father got me a week ago, I put it on. The color was a blood red with black accents and the coat reached down to just a few inches off the ground.

"Huh..." bending my left arm, the coat surprisingly didn't tear. "Alright..." I had the barrel of the gun pop out of my mechanical arm. Taking a closer look, I noticed that the fabric would get in the way of my shots. Figuring it'd be better than waiting for the piece of cloth to fall off from bullet holes, I cut a hole into the forearm of the coat and ripped it off. Satisfied, I put the gun away. Looking at the floor, my eyes landed on my twin swords that I had bought after trading in my katana. Grabbing their sheathes, I put them on, one on my back and one on my hip, before placing the swords in them. Done, I left my room.

Walking down the aisle, I stopped a few feet away from the room Weiss and her team were staying in. I was about to walk in when I decided against it. The whole team just recently got back together and they haven't had much time spent alone. Sighing, I turned around and took a step back to my room when the train suddenly lurched.

Keeping my balance, I looked back to see my dad and team RWBY running for the nearest door to the exterior of the train. Following them, we all made our way to the top of the train, where countless Manticores were waiting. The two Huntsmen were already up top, attacking the Grimm.

Getting on top of the fast moving train, I saw one of the Huntsmen get grabbed and thrown off of the train to the forest below. Ripping my weapons from their sheathes, I readied myself.

"What's the plan, Ruby?" Blake asked.

"Don't let anyone else die!" my half-sister replied.

And with that, we all charged into battle.

Reaching a Manticore that had landed on the train, I slid under it as it swung at me. Rolling onto my feet, I had the gun come out of my arm and used an explosive shot to launch me over the Grimm. Swinging at its neck, I decapitated the winged beast.

Landing on my feet, I looked back and saw countless more flying towards us. Readying myself, I took a step towards them but felt myself get knocked off the train by an explosion. Feeling my fall get cut short, I looked behind me to see my back was against one of Weiss' glyphs.

"Come on!" she shouted at me.

Glancing towards the other Manticores, I nodded. "Right!" standing up and jumping off the glyph, I changed into my bird form and flew above one of the Grimm giving chase. Changing back, I swung my swords at its wings and cut right through them. The Grimm spiraled to the ground as I landed safely on the train.

Seeing a Manticore flying directly towards me, I sheathed my weapons and placed my hands together. Feeling my semblance activate, I drew my swords and swung them at the beast. Cutting the Grimm in half, I looked to my left and saw my copy staring back at me.

Looking away, another Manticore flew at me. As I gripped my weapons tighter, my copy jumped at the beast and shoved his swords into the Grimm's open mouth, killing it.

Hearing a bunch of clicking sounds, I looked behind me as multiple turrets popped out of the top of the train cars, shooting at the flying Grimm. I looked up and saw the Manticores get hit by the shots and turn to dust.

Focusing back on the fight at hand, I saw my copy get hit off the train by a fireball. After a few more Manticores got shot down, the Grimm started to back off.

"TUNNEL!"

I looked behind me and saw the tunnel. Looking for the nearest entrance into the train, I quickly sheathed my blades and started running down the train car. Finding an opening, I gripped the top bar of the ladder and swung myself inside just as the tunnel entrance passed, barely missing me.

Hitting the floor of the train, I rolled onto my side. Slowly getting to my feet, I dusted myself off. "I said, turn those damn things off!" I heard my father yell.

"Those things are keeping us alive!" Dudley shouted back. Turning around, I saw my dad holding the Huntsman by his collar. Walking into the same train car as them, I noticed the Huntsman's arm was purple.

"Us, sure, but they're putting the passengers in danger!" my dad replied.

"I'm the one they hired for this job, okay?!" Dudley shouted. "I'm in charge here!"

"Forgive me if I'm not exactly reassured."

"Get off me!"

"Look, if you bozos had been doing your job instead of shaking down passengers, maybe we wouldn't be in this-" my dad was cut off as Ruby placed her hand on his shoulder. Stepping aside, Ruby looked to the Huntsman.

"Please just shut off the turrets." Ruby said softly.

"Trust us, we know what we're doing." Jaune stepped up to him and started to heal his arm with his aura.

"Fine." Dudley said.

"Ren, could you use your Semblance to mask everyone on this train? With the guns off and emotions hidden, they might lose track of us!" Nora said.

"Hm, I never attempted to affect this many people." Ren replied.

"Well, you've never had Jaune's help before." Ruby said.

"He could amplify your aura." Weiss added.

"Don't look so worried, Ren. You can totally do this!" Nora said.

"I'm afraid there's one complication... The Grimm are also attracted to this." Ozpin said, gesturing to the lantern.

"Why keep that from us?" I crossed my arms as I glared at him.

"What's that?" Dudley asked.

"None of your business. Oz, are you serious?" my dad asked.

"Why wouldn't you tell us that?!" Yang growled.

"I-"

"It doesn't matter right now." Ruby said. "Every second we're on board this train, we're putting everyone else in danger. Get the passengers to the front cars, you'll still mask the emotions and kill the turrets... we just can't come with you. If we cut the back cars with us and the Relic on them, we can deal with the Grimm. You just make sure the rest of the train makes it safely to Argus."

"Only if you promise you'll meet us there." Jaune said.

"Promise."

Making our way back onto the top of the train, Blake cut us away while Ren, Nora, Jaune and Pyrrha set up to get the rest of the train to Argus.

Readying my swords, I watched as a Sphinx landed on our train car. "Now!" Ruby told Nora through her scroll before putting it away.

Oscar fought the Sphinx while the rest of us shot more Manticores out of the sky. Once it seemed they started to die off, we focused our attention on the Sphinx.

"We need to ground it!" Ruby shouted.

"On it! Yang!" Blake called to her teammate. Yang took out a Manticore before launching herself towards and under the Sphinx. Blake threw her weapon over the Grimm and Yang punched it under and around it, wrapping the ribbon around the beast. She did this a few more times before both she and Blake pulled on the ribbon to hold the Grimm still.

Weiss used her Glyphs to stand in front of the Sphinx, using two more Glyphs to freeze its wings. My dad and Ruby then shot the wings, shattering them before spinning at the beast at the same time, cutting it in half with ease. But as it died, the Sphinx launched a fireball that landed on the train tracks. Weiss immediately used her black Glyphs to hold each of us still as the train derailed off the tracks and into the snow below.

As the train crashed into the ground, I felt myself get propelled off the train, hitting my back against a tree.

End of chapter 37


	38. Chapter 38

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

(Please do not read unless you have watched RWBY volume 6 chapter 2. Enjoy)

Chapter 38

2 weeks earlier, one day after the attack on Haven

Liam

"We need to take the relic to Atlas?" my half sister asked.

"That's what Oz said." my dad replied.

We all turned to look at Weiss. "You've got to be joking..."

"Well trust me, I'm not crazy about it either. And without the Spring Maiden here to seal the Relic back in its Vault, it's our best option." my dad added.

"Atlas may be the safest kingdom we have at the moment, but their borders are closed. General Ironwood called everyone back." Ren said.

"Eh, not everyone." my dad activated his scroll, showing a hologram of a highlighted portion of land. "The city of Argus is a ways north of us and it's the primary trading port between Anima and Solitas. They've got the largest Atlas military base outside the kingdom. There's no way they'd leave it abandoned, and if we play our cards right, I think there's a good chance we could convince them to escort us straight to Ironwood."

"I mean, we do have the missing Heiress to the Schnee Dust Company." Blake chimed in.

"Ex-heiress, actually." Weiss corrected.

"True, true. But if there's a chance of reward money, I say we go for it." Yang smirked.

"Ugh..."

"Hopefully the first option will suffice." Ozpin, who was currently taking control of Oscar, said as he walked into the room.

"Glad to see you're feeling better." my dad said.

"Likewise, and while I'm sure we could all use more time to recover, I'm afraid time is of the essence." Ozpin said.

"Right, as long as that thing's out in the open, its power could fall into the wrong hands." I added.

"Speaking of, what does it do exactly? Qrow never really told us." Jaune asked.

"Of course." he detatched the relic from his hip. "The Relic of Knowledge has a wonderful, and incredibly dangerous ability." the Relic grows into it's original size as it was found. "Its user can ask any question, and the lamp will provide an answer."

"Intriguing..." Ren stared at it.

"That's incredible..." Blake said.

"Indeed." Ozpin nodded. "However, it's not without drawbacks. The lamp cannot tell of events that have yet to happen, and it will only ever answer three questions every one hundred years."

"Well, I guess that's not so bad. Adds a lot of pressure though." Yang said.

"Then let's put it to a vote! What should we ask first? Oh! Can we ask for more questions? CAN WE ASK FOR MORE QUESTIONS?!" Nora asked.

Ren facepalmed. "They're not wishes."

Ozpin chuckled. "I'm afraid you won't be able to ask it anything at the moment." Nora grunts in frustation. "The questions were used before I sealed it away."

"Well, at least now we know what it is. And we'll be sure to keep it safe!" Ruby smiled.

Present day

"Liam?" I felt my shoulder get pushed gently. "Liam?" my eyes slowly opened to a beautiful white haired girl.

"Hey." I slowly sat up. "What happened?" I rubbed my head.

"You were knocked out." Weiss answered. "You were only out for a minute or two." she held her hand out to me.

Accepting her help up, I glanced around. "Great! This is just great! We're stranded, we lost a third of our party, and we've gained a defenseless old lady!" Yang said as she pulled her motorcycle out of the snow, falling over as she finally freed it.

"Old lady?" I repeated, confused of what she meant.

"My name is Maria Calavera, and I am not defenseless! I'm just a little hard of hearing. And blind without my eyes, that are in desperate need of repair." She tapped on her goggles, which opened wide and close, before opening narrowly again. "Okay, I'm starting to see your point."

"Yang, knock it off, will ya? If we lose our cool now, we'll just be inviting even more Grimm." my dad sighed.

Brushing the snow from my clothes, I joined the others. "Does that even matter? Apparently, we've been attracting Grimm ever since we left Haven." Blake pointed out.

"Oh, and how could I ever forget about that? Whatever happened to 'no more lies and half truths'?" Yang growled at Oscar.

"Yeah, I think it's time we got an explanation..." Oscar's eyes glowed as Ozpin took control.

"I did not lie to you..." he said.

"Well you certainly didn't tell us everything about the Relic." Weiss growled.

"Please, now is not the time." Oz said.

"No, we're past that! I wanna know why you're still not telling us everything!" Yang shouted.

"It is true that the Grimm are attracted to the Relics." Oz replied. "It's faint, but undeniable. I believe it has to do with their origin, but I'm not entirely sure. Regardless, I feared that making you all aware would only add anxiety and negativity. It seemed like the safer option."

"You know, I'm getting real tired of people choosing what's best for me." Weiss said.

"Is that why you chose to lie to everyone about Lionheart too?" I asked Oz.

"Yes, as a matter of fact, I believed the Kingdom of Mistral deserved better than the truth." Ozpin replied. "And I believed Leonardo deserved to be remembered for his lifetime of service, and not for the unfortunate missteps he made in his final years."

"Missteps?!" Yang repeated.

"What Professor Lionheart did was reprehensible." Ozpin told us. "I am not here to argue differently, but does one lapse in judgement truly negate all of his good? Do we not all have regrets? You may have met Professor Lionheart, but you never met the man he was before Salem found him."

"Look, we're supposed to be in this together. You can trust us! We're not gonna turn our backs on you." I told him.

"Do you really think Leo was the first?!" Ozpin shouted. We all stopped dead in our tracks as he turned to face us. "That he didn't say those exact same words to me? I'm sorry, but you have to understand that my behaviors are backed by experience. I'm not saying that I have reason to think you will betray me. I'm saying that I have reasons for the things that I do, the secrets I keep, the reason I..." he suddenly stopped. "Where's the Relic?"

"Right here." Ruby held it in her hands. "It got scattered in the crash."

"Please, hand it over." Ozpin held his hand out to my sister.

"So all those times you talked about having faith in humanity, that was just for everyone else?" she asked.

Ozpin sighed. "That's not what I meant to suggest. Miss Rose, the Relic is a powerful item and I simply feel as though it is my burden to bear."

"But, you said it couldn't do anything right now."

"Why does it matter who carries it?" I asked him.

"I need you to listen to me-" he suddenly froze in place.

"Oz?" my dad asked.

"Hurry...he's...trying to stop you." Oscar grunted out as he fought for control.

"Stop her from what?" Yang asked.

"He's afraid... you'll find out what he's... hiding!" Oscar fell to his knees. "Her name is Jinn. Say her name to summon her."

"Her name?" Ruby repeated before looking down at the relic. "Jinn?"

The snow suddenly stopped as did the wind. "What?"

Ruby let go of the Relic as it floats a short distance away, cyan smoke emanating from it. Suddenly, the lamp is enveloped in the smoke, and from it, a giant, feminine figure emerges. Her skin and hair colored blue, and decorated with gold jewelry and ornaments. The figure stretches and moans. "Wonderful." Jinn said. "Tell me, what knowledge do you seek?"

"What are you?" I asked.

"I am Jinn, a being created by the God of Light to aid humanity in its pursuit of knowledge. I've been graced with the ability to answer three questions every one hundred years. You're in luck, as I am still able to answer-"

"That's enough!" Ozpin shouted, cutting her off.

"...two questions this era." Jinn finished. "It's a pleasure to see you again, old man."

"Ruby, please...don't." Ozpin begged.

My dad glanced at Oz before taking a step towards us. "Hey." me, Weiss, Blake and Yang all readied our weapons, making sure he wouldn't try and stop Ruby. He slowly raised his hands. "Do whatever you think is right, kiddo."

"Jinn?" Ruby said softly. "What is Ozpin hiding from us?"

"NOOOOO!" Ozpin suddenly got to his feet and rushed Ruby. As he reached her, I was suddenly put in some sort of white void.

"What?" I looked around but no one was here except me. "Weiss? Weiss?!" An environment suddenly manifested, showing a path leading to a castle in the distance. I heard a woman humming coming from the castle.

"Once upon a time, there stood a lonely tower..." Jinn said. "...that sheltered a lonely girl." the scenery changed and I was suddenly standing behind a blonde woman sitting in front of a mirror, brushing her hair. She was...beautiful. "Named...Salem."

End of chapter 38


	39. Chapter 39

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

(I have watched v6 e3 about a thousand times now and I realized that I cannot change a thing in the episode. I usually make a few changes here and there so I don't copy the show exactly. But this episode gives no room to make _ANY_ changes whatsoever. So, this chapter will take place after RWBY Volume 6 chapter 3. I highly recommend you watch the episode before reading this chapter. Thank you and enjoy.)

Chapter 39

Liam

"Salem can't be killed...you all heard her too, right?" Yang asked as we all turned to face Oz.

"I-"

"There was so much you hadn't told us!" Yang shouted. "How could you think that was okay?!"

"Professor..." Ruby said softly. "What is your plan to defeat Salem?"

"I...don't have one..."

My dad suddenly punched him, sending Oz into the tree behind him. I immediately rushed to help Oz, glaring at my father as I kneeled next to him.

"No one wanted me..." my dad said. "I was cursed... I gave my life to you because you gave me a place in this world... I thought I was finally doing some good..."

"But, you are!"

"Meeting you...was the worst luck of my life..." my dad added.

"...maybe you're right." Oscar's eyes glowed as he took back over. Wincing, Oscar held his cheek.

"What happened?" Ruby asked.

"He's...gone..."

"That bastard!" Yang shouted. "Tell him we're not done yet!"

"No, this is different." Oscar replied. "He's gone. It- It's like he's locked himself deep inside my head. Our head?" He held his head in pain. "I hate this! I want it to stop!"

"He just left us?" Weiss asked.

"What are we gonna do now?"

"Enough! We need to get move on. It'll be dark before we know it, and every one of you is spewing negativity!" Maria said as I helped Oscar to his feet. "There's a trail over there, trails usually lead somewhere."

"Lady, I don't know who you think you are but-"

"No buts!" Maria slammed her cane down. "I understand that you're upset. Honestly, I'm still coming to terms with the fact that this is humanity's second time around. But, if we don't move, we die. And I'll be damned if I've lived this long just to die out here in the cold!"

"She's right. Come on." Ruby said.

Sighing, I followed my father as we started following the trail.

Minutes later

I lagged behind the group a bit, wanting to get my head straight about what we learned. Salem can't be killed but...if we don't help Oz, then we let Salem win. He may have lied and hid things from us but...he's still trying to do the right thing.

I rubbed my forehead in frustration. "Damn...this is...fucked..."

"Everyone, quiet." Ruby said, getting us all to stop in our tracks. "Do you hear that?"

We kept silent as the sound of metal squeaking filled the air. "It's coming from over here."

Following the noise, we came across a place called "Brunswick Farms." I read the sign.

"Well, at least one good thing happened today." Blake said.

"It looks abandoned." Weiss pointed out.

"It's still better than this." Ruby gestured to the snow.

I walked ahead of them and through the gate. "Where are you going?" Weiss asked.

"I'm going to search one of these houses." I replied, walking towards one of the houses to my right. "See what I can find."

End of chapter 39


	40. Chapter 40

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Chapter 40

Liam

Walking up to the door of the third house I visited, I knocked. "Hello?!" I shouted. "Anybody home?!" I waited a few seconds but got no answer. "Hmm...something's not right..." the other two houses also didn't answer. "Fuck it." pulling my foot up, I kicked the door open. Pulling one of the weapons off my back, I held it at the ready as I started searching the house, starting on the first floor.

Walking down the narrow hallway, I came across a door and opened it. Seeing it was the bathroom, I approached the bathtub and ripped the curtain open. Seeing it was empty, I left the room, closing the door behind me.

Continuing down the hall, I came across another door and opened it. It was a bedroom that seemed to belong to a little girl. Quickly scanning the room, my eyes landed on a lump in the bed that looked like someone was sleeping. "Oh!" I quickly took a step back out of the room. "I didn't think..." I stopped as I noticed the person didn't move at all. "Hello? Little girl?" I slowly approached the bed. "Are you okay?"

Placing my hand on her shoulder, I moved her onto her back and almost choked. "On my god!" I fell onto my back in fright. The little girl was dead and decomposing. Pressing my back against the wall, I stared at her, shocked. "What the hell happened here?!"

I had no idea how long I sat there, but I eventually got to my feet to search the rest of the house. Heading upstairs, I went from door to door, finding the parents room and seeing them both in their bed, decomposing. "What could have done this?" I backed out of the room, closing the door and feeling a hand on my shoulder. Jumping, I looked to see my father standing in front of me.

"Come on." was all he said before leading me outside and to the house the others were staying in.

Minutes later

"It's the same in every house." my father said as we entered the room the others were in.

"What?!"

"Yeah..." I nodded, confirming what he said was true. "The house I searched..." I trailed off.

"Bodies. Every bed in every home. It's like the whole estate just went to sleep and never woke up." my dad finished for me.

"Then we're not staying here, right?" Weiss asked.

"We don't have a choice. Storm outside's only getting worse. We'd freeze to death before we made it anywhere." my father replied.

"Well, might as well get comfortable." Maria said, getting up and walking over to the bookshelf.

"Yeah, fat chance." Yang said.

"Okay, then, let's do something. If this place wasn't abanodoned it might still have supplies we could use." Ruby suggested.

"Hey, yeah. Maybe even a car." Oscar said.

"I'll do another sweep of the grounds. No one else goes anywhere alone." my dad said before leaving.

"Yang and I can search the other buildings for vehicles." Blake suggested.

"Fine, whatever gets me out of this house." Yang followed Blake out.

Running a hand through my hair, I let out a sigh. "This is...man..."

Ruby left the room, followed shortly after by Weiss. Feeling myself get a bit tired, I sat down at the foot of the couch, letting my head rest against it.

 _"What could have done this to them?"_ I stared up at the ceiling, fighting the urge to close my eyes. _"Maybe I should rest, figure things out in the morning."_ yawning, I let my eyes slowly close.

End of chapter 40


	41. Chapter 41

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Chapter 41

Liam

I woke up with a slight jerk. Glancing around the room, I saw everyone else still asleep. "Man..." I was about to stand up but stopped when I noticed Weiss was using me as a pillow. Gently lifting her head, I moved out from under her and placed her back down.

Getting to my feet, I noticed the sun barely shinning through the window. _"What time is it?"_

Walking into the next room, I saw my dad passed out with three bottles of alcohol next to him. Shaking my head, I walked into the next room and glanced out the window. "The storm stopped." I approached the window and looked out. "Guess we're leaving pretty soon..." I covered my mouth as I yawned. _"Maybe I should go back to bed."_ I was about to turn around when I saw two glowing red eyes out in the woods. They were easy to spot since it was early in the morning.

"Alright." I walked to the hallway to grab my weapons before heading back to the window. Opening it and climbing outside, I closed it behind me before heading towards the woods. I couldn't let a Grimm wander around this close to us.

Walking passed the gate, I entered the woods and noticed prints in the snow. Getting a closer look at them, they were definitely Grimm.

Pulling one of my swords off my back, I cautiously started following the prints.

Minutes later

Staring down at the prints, I noticed the prints just stopped. "How-?" I started looking around when I was suddenly knocked to the ground, my weapon flying from my grip. Looking over my shoulder, a Beowolf stood above me, growling.

Rolling out of the way, I ripped my other sword from its sheath and slashed at the Grimm but missed as the creature jumped back. It started circling me as I kept my guard up.

Glancing back at my sword that lay in the snow, I slowly started to back up towards it. Reaching it, I knelt down to pick it up but the Beowolf pounced on top of me, pinning my right arm. The Grimm bit my shoulder, draining my aura.

"Damnit..." I grit my teeth as I had the gun pop out of my mechanical arm. Shooting the Grimm in its side, it howled in pain as it fell off of me.

Quickly getting to my feet, I raised my sword and decapitated it. Placing my hands on my knees, I took a few deep breaths. "Man..." picking up my second sword, I placed them both in their sheaths on my back.

Looking down at the snow, I saw my footprints and started following them back to the farm.

Minutes later, Brunswick Farms

Walking through the gates, I saw everyone awake and standing by the well. "We signed up to try and save the world, not just... delay the inevitable." I heard Oscar say as I approached them.

"What's going on?" I asked but my question seemed to be ignored.

"Last night, I...I couldn't stop thinking - why are we even going to Atlas?" Weiss asked.

"What?"

"Weiss, we have to." Ruby replied.

"Why?" Yang asked as she stood up. "Ozpin hid the Relics behind giant doors under enormous schools, but... how long would it take Salem to find a lamp in the middle of nowhere?"

"What? The Grimm might-"

"They'd find it eventually, sure, but bury it or just throw it down the well, it would take years." Yang interrupted. "It might not even happen in our lifetime. But we could be done with it now."

"Are you serious?" I asked her. "We can't just-" I stopped as Ruby took the relic off her hip and started walking towards the well. "Ruby?"

"I am...really...tired." she said.

"Ruby, you can't. We have to get it to Atlas." I told her.

"Just let her drop it." Blake told me.

"What is wrong with you guys?!" I turned to face them.

"Liam." Weiss said softly.

I glanced at her before anger surged through me. "Fine! If you guys just want to give up, go ahead!" I growled at them. "But I'm getting the lamp to Atlas! With or without you." I turned back to Ruby. "Give me the lamp, Ruby." I saw her hold the relic out above the well. "Ruby."

She looked back at me before letting out a sigh. "Fine." she looked back down the well and squealed as she tossed the lamp up.

"No!" I rushed towards the well and leaned into it to catch the relic. Feeling my fingers wrap around the small loop, I let out a sigh of relief. "Got it!" as I tried to pull myself out, my fingers slipped, causing me to fall into the well. The last thing I felt was my back hitting the bottom of the well.

"Liam?" my eyes slowly opened to Ruby, Weiss, Yang and Blake standing over me. "Liam?" Weiss repeated softly.

"What?" I sat up with a groan.

"You hit your head when you fell." Ruby said. "Where's the relic?"

"I..." I looked down to see it wasn't in my hand.

"Maybe the current carried it away." Yang suggested.

I got to my feet. "Thought you guys didn't care about it anymore." I said as I looked down at my soaked clothes. "Damnit!"

"Come on." Ruby and Yang pulled out their scrolls and turned on the lights.

We started walking through the waterways, looking for the lamp. "Oh, come on, where is it?"

"Turn off your lights and just look for the glow?" Blake suggested.

"Okay..." Ruby and Yang turned off their lights.

"There." Blake pointed towards a blue light further down the waterway.

"Good." I rushed ahead with Ruby as the others stayed back. Reaching the glow, Ruby turned the corner. As I followed, I stopped dead in my tracks. "Ruby..."

She seemed to not hear me as she picked up the telic. "Guys, I-" she stopped as she saw the creatures as well.

Dozens of horrific, humanoid-looking, Grimm stood in front of us. "Ruby...we have to go." I said softly as I started backing up.

The Grimm started twitching before looking at my sister, reaching out to her. She started to back away, letting out a terrified scream.

"Come on!" I grabbed her shoulder and we both ran back to the others.

"What is it?" Yang asked as we made it back.

Me and Ruby looked back as the Grimm emerged from the tunnel and started walking towards us. I had my gun emerge from my arm and shot a few rounds at the creatures as Ruby did the same with Cresent Rose.

Our shots didn't seem to do much as one of the Grimm let out an ear-piercing screech. My body suddenly felt heavy, as if my strength just left. "What is this...?" Yang said.

"My weapon...feels heavy..."

"Run!" we all looked back to see Maria rushing towards us. "Now!"

She turned around and started running back the way she came. Taking a last look at the Grimm, they continued to walk towards us. "Go, go!"

Following Maria back the way she came, we saw daylight coming from the well but more of those Grimm blocked our path. Another ear-piercing scream echoed through the tunnels, causing me to fall to one knee. "This way!"

Looking towards Ruby, there was another tunnel. Forcing myself to my feet, we all ran through it. Continuing to run blind through the complex tunnels, we eventually made it to a room. However, one side of it was filled with the Grimm.

We all turned to run to the other side but another scream was heard, causing us to fall to our hands and knees. "I can't...do this..." Yang said weakly. "I can't..."

"An exit. An exit!" Maria yelled to us.

Looking up, I saw a staircase leading up to a pair of doors. "Come on!" Ruby crawled towards Weiss to help her.

Hearing metal cling against the ground, I looked back to see Blake laying down as the Grimm inched towards her. "Blake...get...up!" Ruby told her teammate.

"It's fine..."

More Grimm continued to walk into the room, as the closer Grimm started to reach towards the cat Faunus. "BLAAAAKE!" the room suddenly filled with a white light. The Grimm backed away, in pain.

Blake gasped as Ruby helped her up. Me, Weiss, Yang and Maria quickly get back on our feet. "I've got her!" Ruby told us.

"What happened?" Maria asked.

Me and Weiss rush up the stairs to try and open the doors. "They're locked!"

"Move!" I ordered Weiss who did as I said. Pulling my left arm back, I was about to punch open the doors when another screech filled the room.

Feeling the strength leave my body again, I fell down the stairs, hitting my back against the wall. "No..." Yang desperately tried to climb the stairs. "No..."

I tried to force myself to my feet but my body refused to listen. "We...can't..." I sat against the wall.

"Ruby...what color are your eyes?" I heard Maria ask.

"They're...silver..." Ruby answered.

Maria gasped. "Do you have a family? Friends?"

"What?" Ruby asked confused.

"Don't think about them." Maria told her. "Think about the people who love you. Focus on the thought of them, the way they make you feel. Focus!"

 _"The people who love you?"_ I repeated in my head. Closing my eyes, images of Weiss filled my mind along with my father, Yang, Ruby, and my mother.

"Life... is beautiful. It is precious. And it must... be protected."

Opening my eyes and looking in the direction of the Grimm, I saw a glow come from Ruby's eyes before the room was filled with a white light. Once the light vanished, the Grimm had backed away even more but weren't completely gone.

Focusing more on my friends and family, I felt my left eye start to glow like Ruby's. The room was again filled with a white light and, this time, the Grimm turned to dust.

Maria looked back at me as I just stared in awe at what me and my sister had done. Getting to her feet, Yang rushed up the stairs and punched the doors, shooting them open.

Me and the others quickly followed Yang through the doors. "We're back in the house?" Blake asked.

"Great! Now let's get out of here!" I rushed into the next room and saw my dad sitting, passed out, at the bar.

Ruby rushed to him and shook him awake. "Uncle Qrow, get up!"

"Hey! Get off me!" my dad shouted, his words slurring. "What are you doing here?"

"We're leaving, you idiot!" Maria shouted at him. "Come on!"

Yang, Blake and Maria run out of the house. "Not yet..." Weiss said.

"What?" I looked back at her as she grabbed bottle after bottle of alcohol and threw them at the basement entrance.

"Hey...hey!" my dad shouted at her. "What are you doing?!"

More of the Grimm started emerging from the basement as Weiss light the alcohol on fire using one of her Glyphs. "Now we can leave!"

She walked passed us as me and Ruby dragged my father out of the room. "Stop it! Stop! What's wrong with you?! What's..." he suddenly stopped and followed us outside and onto the trailer. Yang started her motorcycle and we took off, away from the farm.

Minutes later

"The Apathy." Maria said. "They're not strong or ferocious. They drain your will to go on. Bartleby's estate was hemorrhaging money towards the end. He wanted to cut costs on Huntsman protection, but in order to do that, he needed everyone calm... always."

"Managed to get two away from their pack. Hike back was miserable, but got the bastards in the cellar." Oscar read from the book he was holding. "Wife thinks I was out sealing the waterway entrance. I'll do it tomorrow and tell her the truth once these things take the edge off of everyone. I'm tired."

"The next page proves that he did, but not before the rest of the pack followed their missing pair all the way home." Maria added. "My guess is they made their way beneath the estate through the water tunnels that Bartleby sealed up the next morning. Bartleby's plan worked." She took the book from Oscar. "No one was angry or sad or scared. No one was anything. And then... no one was left."

Maria closed the book and threw it into the snow. "I'm... sorry for what I said... about giving up."

Yang stopped driving. "Me too. We can't quit until the lamp is safe."

"It's not your fault. It was those... things." Blake told them.

"I should have known. The signs were all there, but I'd never seen an entire settlement withered away like that. I suppose my mind just isn't what it used to be." Maria said.

"Miss Calavera?" Ruby said softly. "How do you know so much about the Grimm? And in the tunnels, you knew exactly what to say to make me...to make our eyes do that." she gestured to me. "How?"

"Well, isn't it obvious, girl? I had Silver Eyes." Maria said with a smile.

End of chapter 41


	42. Chapter 42

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Chapter 42

Liam

Maria had just finished telling us how she lost her silver eyes. "I can't believe it. You... You're the Grimm Reaper, you were a legend! And then you disappeared..." my dad said.

"How exactly does a legend just disappear?" Oscar asked.

"You never used your name, never showed your face." my dad explained. "Lots of us thought you were just layin' low. Eventually, we just came to accept that you were probably dead. But the stories about you, I based my weapon off of yours. I wanted to be as good as the Grimm Reaper."

"Well, I'm nothing but a disappointment, so you're well on your way." Maria said.

"How can you say that?" I asked her.

"Child, a Huntress is supposed to protect others to the bitter end." she replied. "But after I lost my eyes, I only ever looked after myself. Even after my surgery, I was too afraid to fight. Afraid someone would find me again, finish what the others started. You shouldn't aspire to be like me, especially when some of you are clearly stronger already."

"It's... comforting, seeing that your generation seems up to the task of inheriting this world. I'm just sorry I didn't do more to leave it in better shape."

"Well, maybe you can do something now. Teach us to use our powers the way you did." Ruby said, gesturing to me before herself.

Maria smiled at my sister before Ruby's ringtone went off. Pulling her scroll out, she gasped in excitement. "It's Jaune!"

Yang stopped her bike, looking back. "How?" Weiss asked.

"Uh, hello?" Ruby asked once she answered the call.

"Ruby! Oh, thank you! I've been checking my Scroll for your signal since we made it to the city!" I heard Jaune say through Ruby's scroll.

"The city? Wait..." she pointed her scroll around and watched as the signal got better.

Yang quickly turned the bike and drove up the hill, coming to a stop once we reached the top. "Ladies and gentlemen, we have arrived in Argus."

Minutes later

Yang had just put her motorcycle in lockup. "So, what-"

"Cute! Boy! OZ!" I turned around and saw Oscar get tackle hugged to the ground by Nora. "Oh, come here!"

"Are you all okay?" Ren asked as he and Yang hugged.

"We were so worried!" Pyrrha said as she hugged Blake.

"It's been kind of a crazy trip." Yang told them.

"That's an understatement." Weiss said.

"Wait, who's the old lady?" Nora asked.

"I'm so glad you're all safe." Blake said.

"Seriously..." Weiss agreed.

"Ah! You're gonna love this place!" Nora said.

We all started to walk off.

A few minutes later

We were all standing on a trolley. "It's a lot bigger than I thought it'd be." I said as I looked around at all the buildings.

"It's actually one of the largest non-capital cities in all of Remnant." Ren explained.

"No way!" Ruby said. "But wait, wouldn't it be harder to settle something this big away from the main Kingdom?"

"Well, it was, until Mantle showed up." Jaune replied. "Early settlement attempts by Mistral didn't go well. But colonists from Mantle were able to help them brave the cold climate and return for goods that Solitas couldn't provide."

"The two nations worked together to create a hybrid city." Ren continued. "While it falls under Mistral domain, Atlas keeps a military presence here to help keep the people safe and keep trade between the two nations steady."

"Well, until recently..." Pyrrha said softly.

The trolley stopped and we all got off the trolley.

"We should probably start looking for a ship." Blake said.

"So, where have you guys been staying?" Oscar asked.

"Uhhh..." Jaune chuckled, clearly nervous.

"What?" I asked.

"There you are!" a woman yelled to us. Looking to see who it was, I saw a blonde woman with blue eyes holding a baby.

"Who's that?" I asked him.

"Hey, Saph." Jaune smiled and waved back.

I noticed Ruby was looking to the woman before Jaune, her eyes wide. Copying what she was doing, to see what was so fascinating, I noticed a lot of similarities between the two.

Minutes later

"I can't believe I'm meeting your sister! I have so many questions." Ruby squealed.

I was currently sitting on the couch, next to Maria.

"Oh, I can give you the rundown later!" Saphron said.

"Will you guys knock it off?" Jaune asked.

"What? I love telling stories about my baby brother." she squeezed Jaune's cheek.

"I am not a baby! That is a baby." he flailed his arms at her before pointing to the kid who puffed at him.

Yang and Weiss fussed over the baby, both of their eyes wide.

"So Saphron, you're the only Arc living here?" Pyrrha asked.

"Yep! Moved the second I could. Jaune and I are the only two living away from home. I guess he just wanted to be like his big sis." Saphron said.

"I, uh..." Jaune groaned.

"Aw, you didn't deny it!"

The front door opened and A dark-haired woman with glasses walked in carrying a bag of groceries. "Everyone, this is my wife, Terra Cotta." Saphron said.

Everyone greeted Terra.

"Hello!"

"Hey there!"

"Nice to meet you."

"Why, hello there!" Terra chuckled. "Wow, quite a party, you weren't kidding. Hun, can I get some help please?" Saphron quickly rushed to help her.

A few minutes passed before the two walked back out and Jaune, Nora, Pyrrha and Ren went to make sandwiches.

"You're sure it's alright if we stay with you?" I asked.

"Of course, we're happy to house Huntsmen and Huntresses." Saphron replied.

"You all risk so much to keep people like us safe. It's the least we can do." Terra said before turning to my dad. "Especially for such an elite Huntsman like yourself. Although, I will say I was surprised to learn you had students helping you. Is that even... legal?"

I glanced to my dad to see he wasn't paying attention. "Hey!"

"Uh, of course." my dad answered. "Think of it as an extended training mission. Trust me, I was a professor. Even went to the same academy as them. Let me tell ya, these kids are way better than we were at their age."

Jaune, Ren and Nora walked back out with plates full of food. "Well, not better than me specifically, but a lot of students-"

"Shut up, there's food!" Ruby shouted.

Weiss offered me a sandwich but I turned it down. "Not hungry?" she asked.

"Not really." I told her.

"Excuse me, I'll be right back." Terra answered her scroll and walked out of the room. "Hello?"

"Is everything okay?" Pyrrha asked.

"Oh, yeah, it will be." Saphron replied. "Terra's a technician for the town's relay tower. Unfortunately, the military's radar system is also housed there." She started making baby talk to Adrian. "Guess what's been on the fritz lately and who's getting falsely blamed."

Terra peeked back into the room. "Me."

"So, what's your plan for tomorrow?" Saphron asked.

"Well...We're trying to make our way to Atlas. We'll probably start with the military base." I answered.

"So, we kind of already tried that, and... it didn't go... super great." Jaune said nervously.

"Come on, it couldn't be that bad..." Yang said.

Once we got to the base, they immediately shut the gate on us.

"Well...that's not good."

End of chapter 42


	43. Chapter 43

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Chapter 43

Liam

"Can't you at least here us out?!" I shouted as I banged my fist on the shut gate.

"Our orders are clear: The Mistral-Atlas border is closed!" one of the guards said.

"Please!" the second said.

"Have a good day!" the first said.

"But-"

"A good day!" the two shouted.

"Hey, if you don't wanna believe that I'm friends with Ironwood-"

"General Ironwood!" the two guards corrected.

"Yeah, General Ironwood, then fine." my dad sighed. "But look, we have Weiss Schnee with us and we're trying to get her home safely."

Weiss looked down reluctantly. "Approach!"

Weiss glanced back at me. I shrugged before she walked up to the gate. "Very well!"

"You may speak with our commanding officer!"

"We will fetch her at once!" the two guards walked off.

"They were... kind of-"

"Super wierd?" Ruby finished for Blake. "Uh, yeah."

"Hmm..." Maria hummed.

"What's wrong?" I asked her.

"Well, I... may know this commanding officer..."

"That's good, isn't it?" Ruby asked. "If she's your friend, then maybe she'd be more willing to help us."

"I wouldn't exactly call us... 'Friends'." Maria shrugged.

"Acquaintances?"

"Not quite." Maria replied.

"Colleagues?" Blake asked.

"Warmer."

"Enemies?" Yang asked.

"That's the one!"

"Wait, what?"

"Oh, yes." Maria said. "I come through here about once every ten years to get my eyes checked up in Atlas. You bring outside cashews on one flight, and suddenly you're placed on the additional screening list for life!"

"You've gotta be kidding me..."

"Now, now, let's not give up hope yet. Maybe she's dead!" Maria smiled.

The gates suddenly opened as the two guards returned. "Introducing!"

"Special operative!"

"Caroline Cordovin!" the two stepped aside, showing a rather short old lady.

Cordovin walked up to Maria and the two glared at each other. "Witch."

"She-devil."

"Hm. I've seen you've chosen larger contraband to smuggle this time." Cordovin said.

"Oh, Cordo. You know they say time changes people, but I see you've still got that stick right up your-"

"H-hello!" Ruby cut off Maria. "Miss, uh, Cordovin. My name is Ruby Rose, and I was wondering if you would hear us out about-"

"I've already heard what your other little friends had to say, Miss Rose." she turned to team JNPR who stood behind us. "What are you doing back here?! I thought I told you to leave!"

"And I told you we wouldn't rest until you let us through!" Nora tried to charge forward but Ren and Jaune held her back.

"Nice to see you again as well!" Ren waved.

"You civilians are clearly incapable of comprehending the importance of our mission here in Argus." Cordo said. "So allow me to say this slowly, with smaller words: This base, that relay tower, the very safety of Argus are all gifts from the glorious Kingdom of Atlas! And it is my duty to uphold them, as only I have the wit and tenacity for such a task."

"Such wit!"

"Such tenacity!"

"Or maybe Atlas just wanted to get you as far from the kingdom as possible." Maria told her.

"You're just like the rest of these Argus ingrates!" Cordo shouted. "This city wouldn't even be here if it weren't for our Atlesian ancestors, and what do we get in return? The entire world is ready to put a knife to our throats!"

"Please, we know your kingdom had nothing to do with the Fall of Beacon. We were there." I told her.

"No one's happy about the Atlas borders or embargo, but I know General Ironwood is just worried." Weiss said. "It's why we need to talk to-"

"The General is no coward! Atlas is strong. If all the kingdoms plan to make us their enemy, then so be it! Atlas will prevail!" Cordo growled.

"Atlas will prevail!" the two guards repeated.

"Do you two really need to do that?" I asked them.

"If Miss Schnee has truly come to her senses and wishes to return to her family, then, of course, the Atlas military will escort her home." Cordo added. "But the kingdom will not be responsible for her 'friends' of... questionable character." she glanced at Blake as she said that last part.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Weiss growled at the woman.

"It means we're done here."

The three Atlas personnel left, shutting the gates behind them. "Well, what now?" I asked.

"I don't..."

"Weiss. I told you we wouldn't leave your side for a second. We'll find a way to Atlas. Together." Ruby placed her hand on Weiss' shoulder.

"So...where are we going now?" Ruby asked my dad.

"Yeah, what's the plan?"

"The plan?" my dad said bitterly. "The plan just got shut on our face three times over. I'm going for a drink."

"Uncle Qrow, I really think we should try and come up with something..." my dad walked away before Ruby could finish. "...together."

"What's his problem? It's not your fault we can't go on." Jaune said.

"If he's gonna be a jerk then we'll just come up with something without him." Nora said. "I mean, we've got Ozpin with us! He usually knows what to do."

We all glanced at each other.

"What is it?" Pyrrha asked.

We got back to Saphron's house before telling team JNPR about Salem.

Jaune punched the wall after hearing the news. "Jaune!"

"Everything we did was for nothing!" he shouted.

"That's not true." Blake told him.

"Really? Cuz it sure does sound like it." Nora said angrily.

"I, um..."

"If Salem can't be killed, then how are we supposed to win this?" Pyrrha asked.

There was a moment of silence.

"Wow... Great plan everyone!"

"Look, none of this is great, we know. But we're not the bad guys here." Oscar said.

"Are we sure about that?"

"What?"

"He's in your head, isn't he? Did you already know about this?" Jaune stormed over to Oscar.

"He didn't know any of it!" Weiss told him.

Jaune gripped Oscar's shirt and pushed him into the wall. "How much longer can we even trust him?!"

"Jaune!"

"How do we even know it's really him?! What if we have been talking to that liar this whole time?!" Jaune yelled.

"Jaune!" Ruby shouted.

Jaune glared at my little sister before glancing at Oscar. He slowly released him before heading upstairs. A door could be heard opening before slamming shut.

"Is he...gonna be okay?"

"I don't know!" Nora stood up and left.

"I think it would be best if we had some time to ourselves." Ren said before he and Pyrrha followed Nora.

"Maybe we could all use some space." Blake suggested.

Everyone left the room one by one, leaving me the only one in the living room. Sitting on the couch, I hung my head and placed a hand over my eyes. "Liam?" Weiss said softly.

Sitting up, I looked at her. "Hey..."

"Hey... I was thinking..." she nervously rubbed her arm. "We haven't really had much time to spend together since Haven..."

"Okay..."

"And I thought...maybe now was a good time to...make up for lost time?" she suggested.

Her face was red. "I wouldn't mind that." I told her. As I got up, Weiss took my hand in hers. Heading up the stairs, we went into the room she was sleeping in.

She turned around and grabbed my other hand before falling backwards onto the bed, pulling me on top of her. We both chuckled a bit before our eyes met.

"Did I ever tell you how much I love your eyes?" Weiss asked.

"My eyes?"

"The silver/red combination is really beautiful." she replied. "Almost hypnotizing."

"I'm hypnotizing? No." I shook my head. "If anything _you're_ the one that's hypnotizing, Miss Schnee." I smirked devilishly.

"Shut up." she leaned up and pressed her lips againt mine.

We kept our lips together for a few seconds before slowly pulling away. "Like I said: hypnotizing."

We pressed our lips together again. Licking her bottom lip for entry, she opened her mouth and our tongues danced around each other. After a few seconds, I started to explore her mouth a bit, licking the roof of her mouth and earning a soft moan from her.

I felt her lean deeper into the kiss before pulling away from breath. "Wow." she took a deep breath. "That was...new."

"Glad you enjoyed it."

We were about to kiss again when a voice from downstairs interrupted us. "Liam!" Ruby shouted.

I looked at Weiss before turning my head to the door. "Yeah?!"

"I need you to get down here!" she shouted at me.

I sighed and looked at Weiss before pushing myself off the bed, much to her disappointment. "Be back in a bit."

"You better be." Weiss sat up.

Walking out of the room and downstairs, I saw Ruby waiting for me in the living room. "What's going-" I wasn't able to finish as my sister grabbed my hand and led me out the back door. "Hey!"

Sitting down on the small concrete porch, Ruby looked at Maria, who sat nearby. "So, how do we laser beam monsters with our eyeballs?" Ruby asked the old woman.

"Uh...what?"

Maria hit Ruby with her cane. "First, you stop thinking like that! I want you to think of all the times you two have triggered your powers. What did those moments have in common?"

Ruby rubbed her head. "I... was scared, and stressed. Is it emotional? Like unlocking a Semblance?"

"It's emotional but more focused than that." Maria replied. "Think, what is it you wanted?"

"I wanted to protect my friends." I told her.

"Precisely!" Maria said. "It is the desire to preserve life which fuels the light inside you. And to make no mistake, it is light. Preservation is an extension of creation, or, at the very least, an enemy of destruction. The Creatures of Grimm were made by the God of Darkness, but your light comes from his brother."

"How do you know that?" I asked.

"I always knew how to use the light, but never why it only worked on the Grimm." Maria repkied. "Then, Jinn showed us her vision. Were you paying attention?"

"The God of Light... His eyes!" Ruby got to her feet. "Okay, where do we start?"

"Well, not here." Maria said. "The light will only work in the presence of Grimm. Meaning the only practice you'll get will be a trial by fire. But, what you can do is focus on creating a state of mind that you can tap into when you need it. Don't think about your light as a means of destroying evil, but as a way to protect the people of Remnant."

"But, that can't be right." Ruby said.

"Hm?"

"You said the light only reacts to Grimm, but... I used it during our battle at Haven. It reacted to Cinder." Ruby told her.

"Interesting... Perhaps there was something that you just weren't seeing?" Maria suggested.

"Ruby!" Yang shouted.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"It's Oscar. He's missing." Blake told us.

End of chapter 43


	44. Chapter 44

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Chapter 44

Liam

"Oscar!" I shouted down the dimly lit street.

"Oscar?!" Weiss called out. Me and her were searching for him, since Jaune figured it'd be faster if we split up in small groups.

"Where would a 14 year old kid go at this time of night?" I asked as the two of us continued to search for him.

"I don't know..." Weiss sighed.

We continued to search for him for another 15 minutes but didn't see him anywhere. "Maybe we should head back. See if the others found him."

"Okay."

Me and Weiss went back to the house, seeing my dad laying down on the stairs with Ruby and Yang standing next to him. "I've never seen him this bad." Yang said.

"Come on, let's get him up." Ruby grabbed his arm and helped him sit up.

"Why am I on the stairs?"

"Probably because no one's home, Uncle Qrow. We've been out looking for Oscar." Ruby replied.

"Oscar?"

Hearing footsteps approach, we looked over to see team JNPR approach, along with Saphron and Terra. "I'm sure this looks great to the neighbors."

"No luck?" Pyrrha asked.

"No, you?"

"Don't worry, we aren't going to Atlas without him." Jaune said.

"We?"

"Sorry we won't be staying." Jaune said to his sister.

"No you're not." Saphron smirked.

"How about we get out of the cold?" Terra said.

The door opened, showing Oscar standing in a new outfit. "Oh, I was wondering when you'd get back."

"Oscar!" the two teams tackle hugged the kid into the house.

I glanced at my dad before walking inside. "You had us worried sick!" Weiss told him.

"Are you okay?" Ruby asked.

"What are you wearing?"

Oscar rubbed the back of his head. "Uh..."

"Is something cooking?" Terra asked once she and the others walked in.

"Oh, uh, yeah." Oscar shrugged. "I thought you guys would appreciate a hot meal after... spending all day looking for me, apparently."

"It's my fault we were all out there in the first place." Jaune stepped forward. "Oscar, I am so sorry for earlier. I was way, way out of line, and what I said-"

"No, it's okay." Oscar said. "These past few days, I've been scared of the same things you were. I don't know how much longer I'm going to be... me. But I did some thinking, and I do know that I want to do everything I can to help with whatever time I have left."

Jaune smiled. "Good. This team isn't the same without you, Oscar."

A fire alarm suddenly went off. "The casserole!" Oscar shouted.

"We're on it, chef." Terra and Saphron walked into the kitchen.

Once settled down, I noticed my dad was walking up the stairs. "Where are you going now?" I asked him, crossing my arms.

"I don't want to get in the way of your celebration." my dad told me.

"You've been gone all day! Just sit with us." Ruby insisted.

"Look, Ruby, I'm glad you kids worked out, uh, whatever all that was. But the fact is, we're not a single step closer to Atlas." my dad replied.

"Actually, I think I have an idea." Jaune said. "But... it's sort of a 'no-going-back' kind of idea."

"Well, let's hear it."

"With Cordo on watch, only Atlas airships have the clearance to leave for Solitas. So... we... steal an Atlas airship." Jaune shrugged.

Adrian giggled at this.

"That's not just breaking the law. That's... that's definitely worse." Weiss said.

"How would we even get onto the airfield?" Pyrrha asked.

"That part I haven't quite figured out yet. But I-"

"Okay, stop. Just... stop!" my dad said. "Look, if this thing goes south, it's not something we can just fight our way out of. This is the Atlas Military we're talking about." he sighed. "For your sake, just drop this."

"I want to hear him out." Ruby said.

"Ruby..."

"I want to hear him out!" Ruby shouted. "I know you're trying to protect us, that you're afraid we can't do it, but right now, I don't really care what you think! Just because you don't have an idea, doesn't mean we're out of options! Oz hasn't been here to tell us what to do, but we still managed to get this far anyway. We've been in bad situations before, and we don't need an adult to come save us or tell us what to do. We just did it our way! And I say we do it our way. And if you think you can keep up with us 'kids'... we'd be happy to have you."

Maria laughed. "Looks like you didn't give her enough credit either."

End of chapter 44


	45. Chapter 45

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Chapter 45

Liam

Weiss stood next to me, staring at the Atlas base. "I don't like this." she said softly. We stood a few yards away from the base.

"Hey." I placed my hand on her shoulder. "I'll be next to you the whole time."

She glanced at me and smiled. She gently tilted my face down before pressing her lips against mine for a second. "So, you two remember what you're doing?" Saphron asked, carrying Adrian.

Me and Weiss pulled away. "Yeah." I answered.

"Alright. Let's go."

Weiss and Saphron walked ahead of me while I took a few steps before turning into my crow form. Flying up, I started circling around the base as I waited for Weiss' signal.

I saw the two walk into the base. Weiss was immediately approached by Cordo and was being escorted to a nearby airship. Two of the guards tried to help carry her luggage but soon Adrian started crying, grabbing the guards attention.

Weiss glanced up at me and waved her hand before heading into the ship. Swooping down, I flew inside and perched on the seat, blending in with the darkness around me.

A lot of noise started coming from Weiss' luggage. "Call me heavy... It's all muscle! I'll show you a thing or two about heavy!"

"We're on board." Weiss told the others through her earpiece.

A few minutes passed before the ramp to the airship closed, and we started to take off. Weiss sat next to me, blocking the pilots view of me, just in case.

Staring at her scroll, I watched as the signals of Ruby, Jaune and the others got weaker until we were completely out of range. Once seeing this, Weiss stood up and walked to the pilots. "Miss Schnee! For your own safety, we must request-"

"What?!"

Weiss tied the two together using a Glyph. "Traitor!"

She then threw the two guards off the ship, making sure the two had a parachute before throwing them off.

Once they were gone, I changed back to my human form and stretched. "Man..." I rubbed my left shoulder. "I'm never going to get used to that feeling."

Weiss got Maria out of her suitcase and the huntress took the controls. "And you're sure you can fly this?" Weiss asked as she handed me an earpiece.

I placed the small item in my ear. "Missy, I was the Grimm Reaper! What part of 'best Huntress of her generation' don't you understand?"

"Right, but your eyes." Weiss replied.

Maria chuckled before noticing a small device plugged into the controls. She pulled it out and plugged it into her goggles. "You were saying?"

"That _you said_ your eyes were in desperate need of repair!" Weiss replied.

"Bup bup bup." Maria held up a finger.

"But-"

"Bup!"

Maria turned the ship around. "So far so good." I said.

 _"Manta 5-1, this is Argus Base. We see you circled back. What's your status, over."_ an Atlas soldier said through the radio.

Weiss glared back at me and I gave a nervous shrug. "Why can they see us?"

"Somebody dropped the ball. Don't worry, I've worked with Atlas forces before. I know their jargon." Maria picked up the radio. "Argus Base, this is Manta 5-1. Feel free to gaff off. Thought we were going to scrub due to FOD, but we're back up and green across the board, over."

 _"_ _Manta 5-1, return to base immediately, or you will be treated as hostile, over."_

"What the-? I thought you said you knew their jargon!" I yelled.

 _"Jargon was fine, but our pilots aren't elderly women."_

"Huh, well they got me there!" Maria replied. "Ooh, my mind really is going! Why would you kids let me fly this thing?"

 _"_ _Calavera! You and those insolent children are up to something, aren't you?!_ _"_ Cordo shouted through the radio. _"You thought you could undermine my authority? If you don't return my ship this INSTANT, I will make an example out of you. I will show you the true might of Atlas!"_

Maria pulled out a bag of cashews and started chewing on them. "You hear that, Cordo?"

"Are you ser-"

"That's the sound of me not caring!" Maria started laughing.

"Ruby, we're in trouble. Cordo's onto us, and Maria isn't helping!" Weiss said into her earpiece.

"Why is the radar still up?!" I asked.

 _"_ _We don't know, Blake isn't responding."_

"Great." I placed a hand over my eyes.

"Oh no..." Weiss said softly.

"What?" I glanced at Weiss and saw she was staring at something. Following her gaze, I saw a colossal mech.

"Guys? She's not sending fighters..." Weiss told the others.

"Clearly the people have forgotten that they live in peace thanks to the awesome might of Atlas!" Cordo's voice came from the mech.

"Is Cordovin... piloting that?" Weiss asked.

"Consider this a reminder!" Cordo started making her way over to us.

The mech's cannon charged up and shot at our airship, barely grazing the ship and causing the controls to go critical. I held onto Weiss' chair to keep myself steady. "Are you okay?" Weiss asked.

"I am, but she's clearly lost her mind!" Maria replied.

"And that was merely a warning shot!" Cordo said. "All Atlas personnel standby, and watch how your leader maintains order! It's time you asked yourselves, children... Do you truly wish to defy me?

 _"H_ _urry back, y_ _ou guys_ _. I need you on the ground if we're gonna take this thing down."_ Ruby said.

"This better be good..."

End of chapter 45


	46. Chapter 46

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Chapter 46

Liam

"Ruby, you better have a good plan!" I said through the ear piece.

 _"_ _We've fought giant monsters before. This is just a tiny old lady... with one very big robot."_ Ruby replied.

"You little spider-roaches thought you could creep your way to Atlas?!" Cordo shouted. "Well, let's see how your resolve holds out against the might of the Atlesian Military!"

A cannon popped out of the arm of the mech and launched a missile at the airship we were on. Before it could reach us, it suddenly exploded.

Cordo looked over to Ruby. "SO BE IT!"

Cordo turned her attention towards Ruby and the others. "Dive!" Weiss ordered Maria.

Weiss got up from her seat as we got closer to the others. Maria flew the ship behind them and Weiss jumped out, creating a barrier to block the missile. "That was close." Oscar let out a breath of relief.

"We need to figure out how to stop Cordovin and protect the airship until we do." Ruby said.

"Let's give her more targets to focus on."

"You mean us, don't you?" Nora asked.

"Look at that thing. It's not designed for small enemies." Jaune pointed out. "It's probably meant for giant Grimm that come in from deeper waters. We can turn our size into an advantage. We just have to be smart."

"Maria, can you keep the ship out of harm's way?"

"They can take my driver's license, but I won't let them take this ship!" Maria smirked.

"Very reassuring..."

"I'll be more useful if I go with her. From up high, I can try to spot a weakness." Oscar said.

"Well, he's not the only one who can grab a bird's eye view." my dad added. I stood next to him with a smirk.

"You said you needed me on the ground?" Weiss asked.

"Not exactly." Ruby smiled nervously.

"Well..." Pyrrha stood up. "What are we waiting for?"

Me, dad and Ruby all glanced at each other. "I'll follow your lead." the three of us launched into the air, me and my dad in our bird forms, while JNPR, Oscar and Maria spread out in different directions.

I flew towards the mech to try and spot any weak spots. _"Come on..."_

Cordo swung her arm and I flew under it and around back. The mech was suddenly hit by grenades from Nora. "Hey! Over here!"

"What?!" Nora tried to shoot her again but her shots were stopped by some sort of shield. "Surely you knew Atlas was the father of hard-light Dust, or do lesser kingdoms simply lack proper education?"

 _"_ _Cordo just activated shields!"_ Jaune told us.

 _"I saw that. We need to find whatever's generating it."_ Oscar replied.

 _"_ _You know, in video games, the weak spot's usually on the back of the giant boss!"_ Ruby said.

 _"_ _Ruby, this isn't a game!"_ Weiss shouted.

 _"_ _I'm just trying to- LOOK OUT!"_ Ruby yelped.

Cordo tried to stomp on Weiss and Ruby. "You are ants! You are lower than ants!"

I saw my dad fly up passed me and change back, using his scythe to propel himself and stab his weapon into the mech. "Ah! What was that?!"

 _"_ _Until the shield's down, we're gonna have to get up close and personal with this thing."_ my dad said.

Flying a bit higher, I changed out of my avian form and used my mechanical arm to propel myself downwards with a shotgun blast. Stabbing my blades into the mech, I slid a bit down before coming to a stop. _"That's easier said than done!"_ Ren stated.

 _"Weiss and I are on it!"_ Ruby replied.

I placed my feet on the back of the mech and pushed out, yanking my weapons from the mech and propelling myself away from it. Changing forms, I flew back up and continued to look for weak spots.

The mech was pushed off balance, the arm of it barely hitting my left wing and causing me to spiral. I managed to get myself back under control and started flying back up. "Wait, that's it. When she..." Oscar paused. "RUBY, MOVE!"

I looked down to see Cordo shoot a volley of missiles at Weiss and Ruby, causing a plume of water. From it, Weiss and Ruby flew away on Weiss' summoned Queen Lancer. Once high enough, Ruby jumped off the Lancer and embedded her blade into the mech, causing it to stumble into the cliffside.

 _"GO!"_

JNPR started to hack and slash at the mech before it managed to stand back up. "Get off of me!" Cordo shouted.

I noticed Ruby was hanging from the front of it, and Cordo was attempting to grab her. Ruby let go and started to fall but Weiss managed to catch her.

 _'Good catch, Ice Queen.'_ I continued to fly around but stopped when I noticed Ren and my dad looking at something on the back of the mech.

Flying towards them, I changed forms and grabbed a hold of the mech by Ren. "You two seem like you've found somethin'."

I followed their gaze. "Just the shield generator." my dad smirked before he and Ren started shooting it.

"No, no, no, no!" Cordo shouted.

Nora started shooting at the mech, causing it to stumble. Keeping hold of the mech, Weiss and Ruby flew over on the Lancer. "Jump on!" the three of us did as Weiss said, jumping on her summon and flying away from Cordovin.

"I've had enough of you ingrates!" Cordo raised the mech's arm and knocked Jaune, Nora and Pyrrha down, breaking their auras.

"No!"

Cordo quickly turned her attention towards us and shot her cannon point blank at the Lancer, killing it. As we started to fall, I managed to grab Weiss and pull her close to me, taking the impact of the fall once we landed back on the cliffside. I felt the wind escape my lungs as I fought to sit up, forcing myself to take slow deep breaths.

Finally steadying my breath, I looked towards Cordo to see her pointing the mech's cannon at the cliffside. "This is what happens when you think you know better than those rightfully in charge!" the cannon started to charge up and that's when I noticed my sister was missing.

"Ruby!"

Before the cannon could fire, Maria shot a missile at the mech but Cordo caught it. "Calavera..." Cordo growled as she turned to the airship, throwing the missile back to Oscar and Maria. The missile exploded in front of it, causing it to shake and head for the forest.

"No!"

End of chapter 46


	47. Chapter 47

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Chapter 47

Liam

"You just couldn't keep this rivalry between us, could you, Calavera?! You had to rope in children to fail with you!" Cordo growled.

I saw the ship steady out and fly back towards the mech. "Ruby!" I rushed to the side of the cliff and saw my sister hanging onto her scythe.

She slowly started making her way back up. Once she was close enough, I took her hand and helped her the rest of the way up.

 _"_ _Ruby, can you hear me? Are you guys okay?"_ Oscar asked.

"Are we okay?!"

 _"I know, we were supposed to lay low, but listen! I think I finally found a weakness!_ _"_ Oscar said.

"We're all ears." Pyrrha said as she, Jaune and Nora limped over.

"Guys!" Ren rushed over to his team.

 _"_ _The cylinder on Cordo's cannon rotates and locks in a giant Dust cartridge everytime she changes attack styles."_ Oscar pointed out.

"We noticed."

 _"Right, but her missile launcher doesn't lock in, it pops out!"_ Oscar added. _"Without her shields, one well-placed shot could detonate the missiles while they're still in the launcher!"_

"We could destroy the entire cannon... Oscar, that's brilliant!" Jaune praised.

"Can you... make that kind of shot?"

"We'll only get one chance before she catches on." Ruby said. "I'd have to be practically staring down the barrel of her cannon."

 _"Well, I've got a way to guarantee that._ _"_ Maria pulled the ship around, stopping in front of us. Ruby rushed over to the ship.

"Ruby, what are you doing?!" my dad asked her.

She jumped in and I decided to join my little sister. "I'll help her." I followed Ruby and Maria took back off towards the mech.

As we got closer, Maria picked up the radio. "Hey, Cordo! I've got one missile left and I know exactly where I'm gonna stick it!" she taunted.

Cordo chuckled. "One missile you say? That's a shame, Maria, because I have plenty!"

"ARE YOU TWO CRAZY?!" Oscar shouted.

"Sometimes the best approach is simply the most direct!" Maria replied.

Ruby took position and I stood behind her, placing my right hand on her shoulder. "You got this."

Ruby took a deep breath and pulled the trigger. But the cannon went back into the arm, causing the bullet to ricochet off.

"You thought you could fool me?!" Cordo aimed the cannon at us and fired lightning dust near point blank range.

"Pull up!"

Maria yanked on the controls, causing me to stumble back and hit my side on the wall of the ship. "I can't see! My eyes!" Maria shouted.

"No, no, no!"

"Take control!"

"We're gonna crash! We're gonna CRASH!" Oscar shouted before I felt the ship hit the ground, flinging me out of the side of the ship and a few yards away.

Hitting my back on a tree, I propped myself up and felt my aura break. "Very clever, but even the smartest apes can't compete with the intellect of man." Cordo taunted.

I slowly lifted myself off the ground. "Liam!" I glanced over and saw Weiss rushed over. "Are you okay?!"

"Yeah, I'm fine." I told her. "Just feeling a bit..." I tried to take a step but my leg gave out. Weiss quickly placed one hand on my chest and the other on my back to steady me. "Guess I took more damage than I thought." I chuckled.

She took my arm and wrapped it around her neck before leading me back to the others. "Surrender for your crimes, and accept your punishment." Cordo was talking to Ruby who stood in front of her.

"No!"

"We're going to Atlas. Bigger people than you have tried to stop us and failed, but we're supposed to be on the same side!" Ruby told her. "We're supposed to use our power to protect people, but you just use yours to look down on everyone! We didn't want to steal from you. We did it because you gave us no other choice! Now I'm giving you one last chance to stand down and hear us out."

There was a short pause.

"I've heard enough..." Cordo aimed the cannon at Ruby.

"Ru-" I tried to rush over to her but fell to one knee as a sharp pain rushed up my side. Looking forward, I saw my sister use her semblance to enter the cannon.

A few seconds passed before Ruby came back out, followed by the mech's cannon getting covered in ice and stone. "She did it..." Weiss smiled.

I looked up and saw Ruby was unconscious as she fell through the air. "Weiss!" I pointed at my sister and Weiss immediately used her black Glyphs to slow her speed.

Qrow caught her as Weiss leaned on me, a bit out of breath. "Oh, don't tell me I missed it!" Maria pouted.

Cordo tried to lift the arm but it was no use. "No! No, no, no, NO! You! You're never getting to Atlas! Do you hear me?! NEVER! All forces converge on my position and eliminate these pests at once!"

"Crap!"

"Everyone on board! We're making a run for it!" Maria ordered.

"What about Yang and Blake?" Pyrrha asked.

 _"Ma'am, we've been trying to reach you! Argus is in danger!"_

"What?"

 _"_ _It's a Leviathan! It began its approach during your battle! We need you!"_ I looked out over the ocean and saw the massive Grimm heading towards us.

My eyes slowly widened. "How are we supposed to kill that?"

End of chapter 47


	48. Chapter 48

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Chapter 48

Liam

Some of the Atlas airships shot the Leviathan as they passed by before engaging aerial combat with Manticores and a couple of Sphinx. After a few shots, the Leviathan submerged. _"All units, be advised: Leviathan-class Grimm has submerged but is still on approach. Preparing hard-light shields, over!"_

 _"We're getting slammed by hostiles out here! Where is Cordovin?!"_

"This is your fault! Do you hear me?!" Cordo shouted at us.

"Ruby!" Yang shouted once she and Blake rejoined us.

"Yang! Blake! Are you okay?" Ruby asked the two.

"What happened?" Blake asked once she saw the mech.

"Was that a giant Grimm?"

"Yes..." Weiss answered. "and we just ruined the only thing capable of stopping it..."

Maria pulled the airship around and all of us climbed in before taking off. "This is your fault! YOUR FAULT! This is..." Cordo shouted at us.

"I'm so sorry..." Blake whispered, barely loud enough for us to hear.

"Don't be. This isn't on you." Yang said.

"But-"

"You're safe, that's all that matters." Ruby gave a warm smile before the two hugged.

"I suppose I have to be the bad guy and say it, getting the lamp to Atlas is still our top priority, and right now we have the perfect opportunity to head straight for it. We may not get another chance like this." Maria told us.

"No way!"

"We can't leave, not like this." Weiss said.

"It's like you said, a Huntress is supposed to protect others to the bitter end." Blake added.

"We need to head for the Leviathan. Jaune, can you and Ren be ready to mask our ship?" Ruby asked the two.

"I think we can manage."

"Got a few ideas?" Jaune asked.

"I've got one."

"Eyes up, everybody. It's back." my dad told us.

I looked out the side of the ship and saw the Grimm emerge from the water. As it stalked towards the city, a hard-light dust barrier activated. It managed to stop the creature for a few seconds before it roared and shot an energy beam at the shield before directing it to one of the poles powering the shield, destroying it and continuing to head towards the city.

"It tore straight through..!" Oscar said.

 _"All squadrons, fall back to evacuation procedures. Disengage Leviathan! I repeat, disengage! Over!"_

"No, wait!" Ruby ran to the radio ans picked it up.

"Ruby!"

"We can stop it!" Ruby told them.

 _"Who is this? Identify yourself!"_

"I'm a Huntress. My team and I are heading to the Leviathan and can weaken it for you to attack!" Ruby explained.

"We can?" Jaune asked.

"Well...me and Liam can." Ruby shrugged.

"Ruby, when I said 'trial by fire'-

"We did it at Beacon and at the farm." Ruby replied.

"You really think you can do it now?" Weiss asked.

"We don't really have a choice." I told her.

 _"Manta 5-1, your ship is currently flagged as hostile. You will recieve no support, over."_

Ruby picked the radio back up. "Fine, we'll do it alone if we have to. We can hit it while it's stopped at the next barrier. Ren, you're up!"

Ren used his semblance to mask the ship as Jaune used his aura to boost Ren's. Maria weaved the ship around the battles and headed straight for the Leviathan. I saw the Grimm started to charge it's breath attack again, aiming for the second barrier. "We're too late! Pull up!" I shouted.

Ren and Jaune collapsed after using everything they had. "Damn it...!"

"That's all I've got!"

"It's on the move again! We need to stop it!" Blake said.

"What do we do?"

I looked at the Leviathan before down towards the ocean. Getting an idea, I turned to Weiss. "Can you summon your Lancer?"

Weiss had a shocked expression cross her face. "Well, yes, but-"

"Do it!"

Weiss stared at me for a few more seconds before creating a Glyph under her and just outside of the ship, summoning the Lancer. Once it was summoned, I jumped on with Ruby following behind me.

The Lancer took off towards the Leviathan as Nora and Yang shot at it to keep it distracted. "Okay, okay, we can do this..." I heard Ruby mumble. "We have to do this!"

Flying in front of the Leviathan, I glanced to Ruby who closed her eyes to concentrate. Following her lead, I did the same.

 _"Guys? Guys, hurry, something-"_ I took out my earpiece and tossed it into the ocean, seeing Ruby had done the same before closing her eyes again.

Thinking back on my memories, I felt a wave of happiness overflow me as I remembered being put in my team, I remembered going to visit uncle Tai's house to play games with Ruby and Yang, the dance where me and Weiss shared our first kiss.

Then...a feeling of loss overcame me as dark memories filled my head. The fight on Beacon tower, where Pyrrha and I almost lost our lives, where I did lose my arm, finding out Yang lost hers as well.

Wanting to get away from those memories, I opened my eyes to see the Leviathan staring at me and Ruby. "What?"

Ruby looked down. "No, no, no, no!" Suddenly, the Leviathan opened it's maw and lunged at us. "JINN!"

Time slowed until it stopped completely. "I'm sorry... I don't have a question for you. I just... I just needed a little more time..." Ruby said softly.

We looked to Jinn, who had a stern look on her face. "I know... and while you don't seek knowledge, just this once, I shall give it freely. I will not allow you to use me without a question again..." Jinn smiled. "Even if this was clever."

We turned back to the Leviathan again, but this time, I took my sister's hand in my own. She looked down at our hands before at me, giving a smile. I returned it and we faced the giant Grimm together.

Closing our eyes, dozens of memories filled my head in an instant, like a flip book. The dance, our victory in Vale, arriving at Beacon, my time spent with Weiss in Haven. And finally, my mother, standing outside, her white cloak blowing in the gentle breeze.

I opened my eyes and the surrounding area was englufed in a bright light, mine and Ruby's eyes shining almost brighter than the sun itself.

Once the light retreated, we saw the Leviathan stood encased in stone. I looked at my sister and we shared another smile before the cracking of stone grabbed our attention. The Leviathan's head was moving.

"No..."

"I'll take it from here!" Cordo shouted. We looked over and saw the mech was missing an arm. "After all, I was sworn to protect the people!"

The left hand of the mech turned into a drill as Cordo rushed towards the Grimm, plunging the drill into it and turning it to dust. Once killed, Cordo turned to us and opened the cockpit. "Thank you. And... I'm sorry." Ruby said.

"The Atlas military can handle the stragglers." Cordo told us.

"What are you saying?" I asked.

"I'm saying I don't think anyone would notice if one more ship went missing in my lengthy report." Cordo smiled.

She turned around to help the other airships.

A few hours later

It had gotten a bit dark as we continued to fly towards Atlas. "We should have just enough fuel to make it."

"Thanks, Miss Calavera."

"Hey, Ruby, Liam. You did great out there today. Just don't go giving me heart attacks like that again." my dad told us. He pulled out his flask and was about to take a drink before deciding against it.

"I love you, too." Ruby hugged him.

Heading to the back of the ship, I sat down next to Weiss. "I'm sorry you went through that nightmare. But, I'm glad Yang was there for you in time." Weiss said, referring to the fight between Yang, Blake and Adam.

"We were there for each other." Blake replied.

"Took the words right out of my mouth." Nora smiled.

Everyone then turned to me and Ruby. "Hey, stop it!"

"You two petrified a Leviathan... after diving down the barrel of a cannon!" Ren said.

"Don't act like you all haven't done crazy stuff before!" Ruby pointed to Oscar. "I mean, Oscar made a successful crash landing! He's a fourteen year old farm hand!"

"That was seriously impressive." Jaune said.

"We'd have been stranded without you." Pyrrha added.

"I... thanks, but... I've been meaning to tell you guys... I didn't land the ship on my own." Oscar said.

"Ozpin took control?!" Pyrrha asked him.

"No, he guided me... And then he was gone again..." Oscar replied.

"Does that mean he's been watching us this whole time?" Yang asked.

"I don't know, but... it at least means he was looking out for us."

"Hey, if you've never seen Atlas in person before, you don't wanna miss this." my dad told us.

We all got up and looked out the windshield.

"Is it weird that I'm sorta nervous?" Ruby asked.

"No, I'll believe we've made it to Atlas when I see it." Yang said.

"Well... believe it."

The airship emerged from the clouds and we all saw the floating city of Atlas.

"Wow!"

"You know, you make the trip up to Atlas over and over, but you never get used to that view." Maria said before her prosthetic eyes start to act up again. "Oh, come on!"

Weiss leaned forward, a nervous look on her face.

"Weiss, what is it?" I asked.

We all followed her gaze, and saw above the city of Atlas many Atlas Airships.

"The Atlas air fleet... I knew all of our ships were called back, but..."

"They're set up like they're expecting an attack..." my dad finished for Weiss.

Suddenly, the radio turned on. _"_ _Manta 5-1, welcome home..."_

End of chapter 48

(The end of another season. Sadly, I will have to temporarily end it here until season 7. Until then, I hope you all have a great day and hopefully check out my other fanfictions. 'Til next time, ciao!)


	49. Chapter 49

RWBY: Son of Qrow Branwen

Chapter 49

Liam

 _"_ _Manta 5-1. Welcome home. Please continue your approach to Atlas docking bay Omega-12. A security team will meet you there. Over."_ the woman over the radio said.

"I don't understand. What's happening here?" my sister asked.

"Nothing good..." I told her.

"But we are here. We got the lamp to Atlas, so I guess we land and get some answers." Jaune said.

"I'm not so sure. I've never seen our forces deployed so aggressively before. If we land in a stolen ship, there's no way the security team will let us anywhere near Ironwood. They might even take me back to my father." Weiss said.

As everyone shared concerned looks, I broke the silence. "What should we do, then?"

"Winter!" Weiss pulled out her Scroll. "Put some distance between us and the fleet." she told maria.

"You don't have to tell me twice."

Crossing my arms, I walked to the back of the ship. _"...cannot express our appreciation enough."_ looking out the window of the ship, I saw Ironwood on a screen attatched to a skyscraper. _"Many describe these as uncertain times, and while that may be the case for the rest of the world, I can tell you what is certain. The Kingdom of Atlas will remain strong, and it will remain safe. That is my promise."_

"General Ironwood. He looks…"

"Tired." Pyrrha finished for Yang.

"James, what have you been doing?"

"This isn't right. None of this is right."

 _"_ _Manta 5-1, we've noticed a detour in your route. You are to make your way to docking bay Omega 12 immediately. Do you copy? Over."_ the woman over the radio said.

"We're kind of running out of time here, kids."

"We need to ditch the ship."

"Agreed. Get lost in Mantle and buy ourselves some time." Qrow said.

"I'm telling you, my sister can take us to Ironwood." Weiss spoke up.

"Uh, Weiss?" Pyrrha pointed out the window.

 _"_ _A reminder."_ I looked passed Pyrrha to see Winter on the giant screen. _"Failure to cooperate with Atlas military personnel is a punishable offense. If your sector is under lockdown…"_

"Winter?"

"No offense, Weiss. I'm not sure that's a good idea anymore." my dad pointed out.

"There's obviously something very wrong. If we can just talk to her, then we-"

"Look, I'm not even sure we should be talking to Ironwood until we know exactly what's going on with Mantle." my dad cut her off.

"But-"

"Everyone, calm down. I know someone who can help with both." Maria spoke up.

 _"Manta 5-1, you are to make your-"_

Maria shut off the radio. "Geez, lady, take a hint!"

After landing, we began walking through Mantle together. Trucks drove past, and Atlesian Knight-200s stand on various sidewalks. "Come on now, hurry! It shouldn't be much of a walk." Maria said.

"Is this many soldiers normal?" Jaune asked.

"No. At least, I didn't think so." Weiss replied.

While we walked, a metalic clang sounded behind us, followed by a crash. "Ooh..." Yang was staring at the street before turning to us. "Maybe we should pick up the pace."

"You have to remember, the Kingdom had just lost the Great War. The people of Mantle needed a sign of a brighter future, and that sign was Atlas. After all, a home in the clouds is as bright as it gets." Maria stated.

 _"_ _We are here for your safety. Thank you for your cooperation."_ Winter's voice echoed.

Turning the corner of the street, we walked for a bit more before approaching a building with a glowing green plus symbol above its front door. The side door opens, and a Faunus with a prosthetic arm exits, waving cheerfully to the man who speaks to her from inside.

"And no more heavy-lifting, yah hear?"

"Ah, it's good to see you again, old friend." Maria said as we all walked inside.

An older man is sitting behind the desk, shuffling things around in a drawer. Maria clears her throat, startling him, and he lifts his head to look at her, shutting the drawer.

"Ah, yes, yes. Have we met?"

"Well, this is off to a fantastic start." Ren said.

"Cybernetic optical implants. You adjust them. Every ten years or so?" Maria told him.

He stares at her for a few moments before throwing his hands cheerfully into the air.

"Maria!" The robotic chair he is sitting in begins walking out from behind the desk. "Yes, with the cybernetic optical implants! I adjust them every ten years or so." He offers his hand to her and leads her to an examination table. "Oh wow, has it been that long already?"

"Ah, I know. I age like a fine wine. Would've been here sooner if I hadn't run into these jokers. At the time, I thought they might need my guidance while fighting a little old Sphinx." Maria told the man.

"Oh, did they?"

"No, no. They had much more complicated issues." Maria replied.

"And this is?" my dad asked.

"So impatient. I didn't think I'd need to introduce one of Atlas' finest minds."

"In a place like this?" I asked.

The building creaks, and a ceiling tile falls to the floor.

"He likes to keep a low profile. Something I've come to realize none of you know anything about." Maria said.

"You can call me Pietro."

"Finest heart, too. This pharmacy is just where he volunteers when he's not building the future of Atlas alongside Ironwood, up in the clouds."

"Oh, it's stuffy up there. Down here, I get to help the locals and have a little fun. I'm currently working on shoes that make you dance. Wanna try 'em on?" Pietro asked.

"YES!" Nora said excitedly.

"Before we get to that," Yang stepped in. "we were wondering if you could help us. We came to Atlas hoping to talk to General Ironwood, but um…"

"What exactly has been happening here?"

Pietro coughed. "Well, the Fall of Beacon took a toll on all of us. James was no different. I couldn't tell you exactly what it was he saw there, but it changed him. He's…"

"He's scared."

"Paranoid would be the more appropriate term. You have to understand, it wasn't just the Grimm. Someone completely dismantled Atlas security code, made it their play-thing, and made us look like traitors to some and buffoons to everyone else. Whoever managed to do that is either a genius or one of our own. I fear the answer may be both, and so does the general." Pietro said.

"Maybe Atlas isn't as safe as we thought." Pyrrha stated.

"After we came all this way, we can't just leave, can we?" Oscar asked.

"How does the council feel about all of this? Or Winter Schnee? Do you know anything about her?" Weiss asked.

"Well, the council's so scared, they'll agree to whatever he wants. Though, some representatives from Mantle… Wait, you're… You're Weiss Schnee!"

I quickly stepped forward. "Wait, what was it that you were trying to say about Mantle?" I asked.

Pietro looked from me to Yang. "You painted them."

"What?"

"Is everything okay?" Ruby asked.

"You're Team RWBY!"

"You know us?!"

"Oh, my girl, I do. I most certainly do. And I feel like such a dunce for not recognizing you sooner. My daughter's told me so much about you."

"Your daughter?" I asked.

We were interrupted by a sudden alarm.

"Trouble."

We all quickly ran outside.

Everyone in the group draws their weapons. Upon drawing her katana, Blake looks at the broken blade, exhaling sharply before folding the blade down to wield it as a gun.

"I guess the city defenses aren't doing much."

"Somehow, that doesn't surprise me."

Down the road from us, growling could be heard, as an Atlesian Knight-200 is thrown against a lamp post.

Another robot is thrown, and three more back up into view, shooting at Sabyrs, which tackle and destroy them one by one.

"Well, we didn't come this far to fail now!"

Ruby changes Crescent Rose into scythe form and aims the sniper barrel toward the Sabyrs, which finish destroying the Atlesian Knight-200s and charge toward us. Everyone readies their weapons. Yang charges forth using recoil from her gauntlet, followed by Ren launching himself forward.

Readying my blades, some of the Sabyrs rushed towards me. As it got close, I swiftly killed it before spinning passed it and shooting the one behind it with my robotic arm. Ducking under the third as it pounced, I sliced open its stomach as I thrust my sword into the open mouth of the fourth.

Seeing the Sabyrs turn to dust, I turned my head to the others to see if they needed help. Hearing a Sabyr rush up behind me, I turned around just as it pounced, however it was suddenly suspended in the air.

Glancing back, Weiss had her weapon pointed at the Grimm with her right hand raised. Nodding at me, I turned back to the Grimm and noticed a black glyph under it.

Jumping towards it, I slashed.

Turning to face Weiss again, I saw a Sabyr pounce at her. Running to help, a green beam suddenly cut right through it. Skidding to a halt, I looked up as more green beams finished off the remaining Grimm.

Looking to the sky once more, a figure flew in front of the broken moon with the help of some sort of rocket-esque boots before landed in front of us. Getting a better look in the streetlights, I recognized the figure was-

"Penny!" Ruby said joyfully and in disbelief.

"Darling, why don't you say hello to your friends?"

Penny turns to look in the direction her father's voice came from. Upon seeing Ruby, she gasps and her eyes shine with joy. Ruby smiles and puts her weapon away as Penny leans forward a little.

"Sal…"

"Huh?"

Penny lowered to one knee as a high-pitched charging noise is heard.

"U..."

"Uh…?"

Penny begins gleefully sprinting toward Ruby at high speed.

"Tations!"

Penny leaps and activates her jets, rocketing forward and tackling Ruby, who flails her hands around in front of her and screams, eyes wide. Upon crashing to the ground, Ruby groans in pain. The rest of us put our weapons away and approached the pair. Penny popped back up onto her feet, while Ruby slowly rose with her hand on her head.

"It is such a pleasure to see you all again!"

"Penny, I… I-I thought you…" Ruby said tearfully.

"Died?" Pietro said. "I guess, in a manner of speaking, she did. But we were able to recover her core from Amity Arena once it had made its way back to Atlas. It took me some time, but…"

"I'm as good as new! Better, even! And now I'm the official protector of the city!"

"That's my girl. We're not going to let a little ripping to shreds stop us, are we?"

"No sir!"

"This is…"

"Strangely wholesome." Blake finished for Weiss.

"Sounds like Penny to me." Yang added.

Penny excitedly grabbed Ruby's shoulders.

"We have so many things to catch up about. I cannot wait!"

Just as Penny finishes her sentence with a grin, the city's alarms begin blaring again.

"It seems we will have to wait."

Penny bounces backward and salutes as she charges her jets. "Let's talk more later. I can't wait to hear about all your adventures!" she blasted off but kept talking. "I'mveryexcitedforthewholeexperience!"

"I can't tell if I completely understand what's going on or have, like, a million questions." Norw said.

"And thankfully, I have about a thousand answers. But let's get out of this weather first." Pietro said.

"That was unexpected."

"Never a dull moment."

"But I wouldn't say unwelcome. I was honestly expecting things to go a lot rougher." my dad added.

We began following Maria and Pietro. Suddenly, Jaune, Nora, Ren, Pyrrha and Oscar were knocked down and tied up by bolases. Seeing one hurling towards me, I jumped out of the way but as it missed me, it wrapped around Weiss instead who was walking ahead of me. Seeing her get tied up, I went to help only to get tied up and knocked down as well. Along with Ruby, Yang, Blake and my dad.

Struggling, five uniform-clad people come out of hiding and surrounded us.

"Good work, team."

"Hey! What's going on?!"

"Hey, pal! I'm a licensed Huntsman! Just helped save everyone?" my dad said.

One of them picked up my dads weapon as the other uniformed operatives begin gathering everyone else's, while Atlesian Knight-200s approach, and the operatives hand the confiscated weapons to the robots. One of them then approaches Ruby, picks up the Relic, and looks at it.

"Hm. Let's get them loaded into the next transport."

"Please! We were just trying to help!"

"What is the meaning of this? What are the Ace-Ops even doing down here in Mantle?" Pietro came back over to us.

"Ace-Ops?"

"Doctor, good to see you. Well, we heard a report of an unauthorized ship making an unauthorized landing, followed by an unauthorized use of weapons by unlicensed Huntsmen." one of them explained.

"If we could just talk this out-"

"They'll be able to talk this out once they get to Atlas. Let's move out!"

The Ace-Ops split up and leave the area as the rest of us were shoved into the back of a transport.

"Now, this… This is much closer to what I was expecting."

Looking at my father, I narrowed my eyes. "You had to say somethin', huh?"

End of chapter 49


End file.
